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THE 



Discoveries of America 



TO THE YEAR 1 525 



1/ 

ARTHUR JAMES WEISE, M.A. 



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G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 

NEW YORK : 27 & 29 WEST 23D STREET 
LONDON: 25 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN 

18S4 



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Entered, according to Act of Congress, in tlie yesi iSSj, by 

ARTHUR JAMES WEISE 

in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington 



ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 



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Press of 

G. P. Ptttnani's Sons 

New York 






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THIS WORK IS DEDICATED 
BY THE AUTHOR 

TO 

THE MEMORY OF 

HIS DECEASED "WIFE 

CATHARINE V, UPDEGRAFF WEISE 



PREFACE. 

It Is a fact that America in the early a^cs was one 
of the inliabitcd parts of the earth. The I'^gyptians, 
who were anionic tlie first of the peoples of the east- 
ern hemisi^here to use letters and to write history, fur- 
nisli tlie earliest knc)wn acxount of tlui inhabitants of 
this continent. It is also a truth that some ancicmt 
geoc^raphers and pliilosophers, who had no pf;rsonal 
knowledi^e of the existence of a primitive people in 
the western hemisphere, reg-arded the information re- 
corded by the Egyptians as fictitious and incredible. 
When Columbus proposed to g-o to this inhabited 
realm beyond the western ocean almost all the learned 
men of Portugal and Spain opposed the undertaking as 
visionary, and not a few of them asserted that the navi- 
gatr)r's opinions wen^ absurd, because, as they argued, 
no one of all the seamen who had lived since the crea- 
tion of the world had discovered land beyond Ilibernia. 

The discovery of the continent and the subsequent 
ex[;lorati(jns of the Spaniards not only confuted the 
fallacious arguments of the learned men of the middle 
ages but confirmed the statements of the E_i;^yi)tian 
records descriptive of the civilization of the Atlantic 
country. The tradition oi the peopling of the conti- 
nent by thf: descendants of Euenor, tlie gocxl man l^e- 
gotten in the beginning from the ground, and of the 
residence of celestial beings among the inhaljitants 
peculiarly confirms the account in the Bible of the 



vi PREFACE. 

creation of the first man from the dust of the ground 
and of his descendants having communications with 
angels. 

The asserted discovery of America by the North- 
men rests more upon conjecture than evidence. It 
appears that Columbus was not the discoverer of the 
continent, for it was seen in 1497 not only by Giovanni 
Caboto but by the commander of the Spanish fleet 
with whom Amerigo Vespucci first sailed to the New 
World. 

The land of Francesca, discovered by Verrazzano in 
1624, it will be seen, was early possessed by the 
French, who built a fort near the Indian villaee where 
now is the city of New York, and called the surround- 
ing country La Terre d' Anormee Berge ; a geograph- 
ical designation more significantly expressed in the 
phraseology. The Land of the Palisades. 

The writing of this work required the personal ex- 
amination of many old and rare books, manuscripts, 
and maps, besides the perusal of a large number of 
recent papers and publications relating to its subject. 
The task further demanded a careful review and com- 
parison of the various statements of historical writers 
concerning the voyages of the persons whom they be- 
lieved to have been the discoverers of certain parts of 
the coast of America, between Baffin's Bay and Tierra 
del Fuego. 

It seemed to me that some of the inforn^ation con- . 
tained in the different works which I had examined 
should be presented in the language of the writers or 
in faithful translations so that the intended significance 
of the information could be perceived by the reader. 
I therefore have placed these excerpta before the 
general reader and the critic in the belief that the 



PREFACE. vii. 

citations will be appreciated. They will at least show 
my desire that the judgments of those who examine 
them should not be biased by any conclusions of my own. 
My researches were for the most part made in the 
General Library of the State of New York, in Albany. 
The generous personal interest taken by the State's 
distinguished librarian, Henry A. Homes, LL.D., in 
placing before me the large number of works which I 
desired to examine, was so constant and helpful that 
it is a great pleasure for me to mention and acknowl- 
edge his kind offices. I am also indebted to his 
assistant, George Rogers Howell, for many official 
courtesies. I also owe my thanks to George H. 
Moore, LL.D., the erudite superintendent of the 
Lenox Library, in the city of New York, to Frederick 
Saunders, librarian of the Astor Library, to Jacob B. 
Moore, librarian of the New York Historical Society, 
and to Leopold Lindau, librarian of the American 
Geographical Society. The offices of L'Abbe A. N. 
Menard, vicar of the parish of St. Roch, Paris, 
France ; of Padre Antonio Ceriani, prefect of the Am- 
broslan Library, Milan, Italy ; of Jules Godeby, profes- 
sor of French literature in the Rensselaer Polytechnic 
Institute, Troy, New York ; and of Dr. Titus Munson 
Coan, of New York City, place me under many obliga- 
tions to these gentlemen. It is also a great pleasure 
for me to acknowledge the generous favors of E. 
Thompson Gale, of Troy, which permitted me to 
accomplish the purposes that I had in view when, 
eight years ago, I undertook my long-protracted task. 
The kind offices of my friend, William H. Young, of 
Troy, are also gratefully remembered. 

Troy, N. Y., ArTHUR J AMES WeiSE. 

March 27, 1884. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE. 
Antiquity of the red race. An antediluvian people. Vestiges of an 

ancient civilization in America. Records of Egypt. Manuscripts of 
Solon, the great Greek legislator. Origin of the aborigines of the 
western hemisphere. Founders of an empire. The tradition pre- 
served by the Egyptians. Early navigation of the Atlantic Ocean. 
Isolation of the people of the western continent. The Northmen. 
Iceland found. Greenland explored. Saga of Eric the Red. Voy- 
age of BJarni, Herjulf's son. Explorations of Leif, the son of Eric 
the Red. Tradition concerning Thorfinn Karlsefne. Discovery of 
Vinland. Its geographical situation. The stone tower at Newport. 
Dighton rock. Voyages of the Welsh adventurer Madoc. Discoveries 
of the Zeni brothers. Story of a Frisland fisherman. Estotiland. 
Drogio I_50 

CHAPTER II. 
Arrival of three strangely clad travellers in Venice. Their surprising dis- 
closures. The book of Marco Polo. Marvellous wealth of Cathay. 
Gold-covered palaces. Magnificent cities. Extensive traffic. The 
empire of the Grand Khan. The travels of Sir John Mandeville. 
Commerce of Europe restricted. Use of the mariner's compass. An 
age of superstition. Points of the compass-card. Geographical en- 
thusiasm of Prince Henry of Portugal. Explorations along the coast 
of Africa. The astrolabe made useful to navigators. The Cape of 
Good Hope reached ......... 51-69 

CHAPTER III. 
Christopher Columbus's conception of finding a short and direct way to 
India. His reasonable conclusions. Statements of ancient geogra 
phers. The known parts of the world. Circumference of the eanh. 
Inferences respecting pieces of wood and dead bodies cast upon the 
islands lying off the west coast of Africa. Island of the Seven Cities. 
Letter of Paolo Toscanelli. Distance to Cathay. Columbus's over- 
tures to the king of Portugal. Bartolome Columbus visits England. 
Christopher Columbus seeks aid in Spain. The opinion of the 
learned men respecting his project. The friendly offices of Friar Juan 
Perez. Luis de Saniangel's proposals to Queen Isabella. Columbus 
commissioned to undertake a voyage to Cathay .... 70-93 



X TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IV. 

PAGE 

The object of Columbus's voyage. His journal. His intention to make a 
map of the lands of the ocean. The vessels of the fleet. They sail 
from the port of Palos. The fears of the sailors. Variations of the 
needle. The Sea of Sargasso. Incidents of the voyage. Discovery 
of land. Island of San Salvador. Columbus's description of the 
people and the islands. He believes that he had reached the con- 
tinent of Asia, and that he was near the dominions of the Grand 
Khan of Cathay. He sends embassadors to the sovereign of the 
Orient. His letter to Rafael Sanchez. The high latitude to which 
he sailed. A fort erected at La Navidad, on the island of Espanola. 
The profits of the voyage. Columbus sets sail for Spain. Anchors 
in the Tagus. Visits the king of Portugal. Returns to Spain. 
Enthusiasm of the people. His reception at Barcelona . . 94-144 . 

CHAPTER V. 

Territorial privileges of Portugal and Spain. A line of demarkation 
designated by Pope Alexander VI. The East and the West Indies. 
Columbus's second voyage. The Caribbees. The Villa de la Nav- 
idad burned. The town of Isabela built. Further explorations of 
the coast of Cuba. Depositions taken that Columbus had reached the 
dominions of the Grand Khan. The cemies of the people of Espaiiola. 
The homeward voyage. Ignorance of pilots respecting latitude and 
longitude. Columbus's compasses. Amerigo Vespucci's first voyage 
to the New World. Lands on the coast of South America. Describes 
the natives. The country of Lariab. Columbus's third voyage. He 
surveys the continent. Explores the coast of La Tierra de Gracia, 
Amerigo Vespucci's second voyage. Sails along the north coast of 
South Ameri-ca. Traffics for pearls with the natives. Returns to 
Cadiz. Columbus's last voyage. The edifices of Veragua. The 
evidences of civilization. Writes that he reached the province of 
Mango,, contiguous to Cathay. Dies at Valladolid. His nautical 
chart. Juan de la Cosa's great ox-hide map .... 145-1S5 

CHAPTER VI. 

England sends ships to search for a navigable way to the Indies. The 
first voyage of Giovanni Caboto. Pasqualigo's account of it. Dis- • 
covery of the territory of the Grand Khan. The flag of England and 
that- of St. Mark planted on the coast of the new country. Prima 
Tierra Vista. The island of St. John. Caboto's second voyage. The 
dispatches of Pedro de Ayala to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella 
of Spain. The voyages of Sebastiano Caboto. His explorations 
along the coast of Labrador. La Tierra de los Bacallaos. Sebastiano 
Caboto's maps and manuscripts ....... 186-204 

CHAPTER VII. 

The Portuguese reach the Indies. Land of the Holy Cross discovered by 
Pedro Alvarez Cabral. Caspar Cortereal's voyages. Letter of Pietro 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. xi 

PAGE 
Pasqualigo. Terra Verde. Amerigo Vespucci's third and fourth 

voyages along the east coast of South America. Johann Ruysch's 

map. Martin WaldseemuUer's suggestion. The name of America. 

A fountain of vivific water. Juan Ponce de Leon explores the coast 

of Florida. Vasco Nuiiez de Balboa beholds the Pacific Ocean. The 

coast of Yucatan explored by Francisco Hernando de Cordoba. 

The discoveries of Juan de Grijalva. The country of New Spain. 

The expedition of Hernando Cortes. The magnificent presents sent 

him by Montezuma. The populated provinces of Mexico. Great 

cities. Large temples. Decorated idols. Cortes enters the city of 

Mexico. Its palaces, markets, and arsenals. The horrible sacrifices 

of the Mexicans. The siege of the city ..... 205-274 

CHAPTER Vni. 
The discoveries of Alonso Alvr.rez de Pineda. The project of Francisco 
de Garay. An unfortunate undertaking. The discovery of the Mis- 
sissippi River. The jurisdictions of Juan Ponce de Leon and Fran- 
cisco de Garay. Another exploration of a part of the coast of North 
America. Chicora. Duharhe. Tall people. Habits of the natives. 
Tierra de Ayllon. The voyage of Fernam de Magalhaens. Dis- 
covery of the Strait of the Eleven Thousand Virgins. The Pacific 
Ocean. The Moluccas or Spice Islands reached. Voyage of Juan 
Sebastian del Cano. The sarth circumnavigated. The congress of 
Badajos 275-296 

CHAPTER IX. 
France emulates Portugal, Spain, and England. Discoveries of the 
Bretons and the Normans. Exploration of the St. Lawrence River. 
Giovanni da Verrazzano put in command of a fleet to sail to Cathay 
by Francis I. The king of Portugal attempts to prevent the sailing 
of the vessels. Storm in the North Sea, Departure of the Dauphine. 
Verrazzano reaches the coast of North America. Designates his first 
landing-place Diepa. Fruitless search for a harbor. Friendly, sav- 
ages. Description of the country. Palmetto trees. Sails northward. 
Explorations of the peninsula of Virginia. The Dauphine's anchorage 
at Sandy Hook. Verrazzano explores the bays of New York. The 
Grande River. Block Island. The Dauphine in Narragansett Bay. 
Description of the natives. Exploration of the coast of Maine. Five 
hundred and two leagues of land inspected, Francesca. Verrazzano's 
geographical explanation of his voyage. Arrival of the Dauphine at 
Dieppe 297-334 

CHAPTER X. 
{Addenda.) 
Circulation of the news of Verrazzano's remarkable discoveries. Fernando 
Carli's letter to his father. The adverse opinion of the people con- 
cerning Verrazzano's undertaking. The navigator regarded as another 
Amerigo Vespucci, another Magellan. Three ships equipped to sail 
to the Indies under the command of Verrazzano. His third voyage 



xii TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

to the New Land. The indomitable Florentine falls a victim to 
savage cruelty, liis body roasted and eaten, Ramusio's worthy 
tribute. The navigator's great parchment map. The Maiollo map. 
Hieronymus da Verrazzano's chart ...... 335-343 

CHAPTER XI. 

{Addenda.) 
The French again search for a direct water-route to India. Voyages of 
Jacques Cartier. The names given to the natives of the New Land. 
Tlie peasants of New France. The Hudson explored in the sixteenth 
century. The French name for the Palisades. The country of the 
Grand Scarp. Manants Island. A small fort built by the French on 
the site of New York City. The chateau on Castle Island, near the 
site of Albany. The structure damaged by a freshet. The Mohawk 
Indians show the ruins to the Dutch explorers of the river in the 
seventeenth century. The Hollanders call it Fort Nassau. The 
opinion of the Dutch inhabitants of Albany respecting the people who 
built it 344-363 

Index 365-380 

COPIES OF RARE MAPS. 

■* I. — Delineation of the hyperborean regions by Sigurd Stephanius in 

1570 22 

"^ II. — A part of the map of the New World contained in the edition of 

Ptolemy's geography printed in Strasburg in 1513. . . . 124 

*J III. — .A part of the Cabot-map of 1544, in the Bibilotheque nationale, 

Paris ........... 190 

N IV. — Map of the New World contained in Peter Martyr's " Legatio 

Babylonica," printed in 1511. ....... 220 

■\ V. — A tracing representing the limits of the discoveries of Juan Ponce 

de Leon and Francisco de Garay. 1521 ..... 278 

. VI. — A part of the map of the fourth part of the world contained in the 
Cosmographie Universelle by Andre Thevet, printed in Paris 

in 1575 304 

A VII. — Map of Terre de la Franciscane in the cosmography of Jean Al- 

phonse and Raulin Secalart, 1545 ...... 354 

. VIII. — Map of a part of North America made by Giacomo de Gastaldi 

in 1553 • . • 356 

A IX. — A part of the map of the world made by Gerard Mercator in Du- 

isburg in 1-569 ......... 360 

-I X. — A part of the map of the world made by Juan de la Cosa in 

1500 ......... cover-pocket 

■1 XI. — A part of the map of the world made by Johann Ruysch, con- 
tained in the edition of Ptolemy's geography printed in Rome 
in 1508 ......... cover-pocket 

XII. — A part of the map of the world made by Visconte de Maiollo in 

1527 ......... cover-pocket 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 



CHAPTER I. 

The oldest scriptures, sacred and profane, attest 
the antiquity of the red race.' As early as the 
antediluvian period this division of the human family 
had taken possession of the islands and continent of 
the western hemisphere, where it founded an empire, 
the most famous and formidable of primeval times. 
Great in political power, its commercial, agricultural, 
and other economical interests were commensurably 
vast and unparalleled. The skill of its architects and 
engineers was exhibited in large and imposing edi- 
fices and in extraordinary and extensive public works. 
Aggressively belligerent, its armies overran parts of 
Europe and Africa, exacting tribute, deposing and sub- 
stituting rulers. 

When the Spaniards, in the sixteenth century, began 
to explore the interior of the continent of America 
for gold, silver, and precious stones, they found popu- 
lated provinces, great cities, temples, palaces, aque- 
ducts, canals, bridges, and causeways. The astonished 
adventurers also discovered the vestiges of an aborigi- 
nal people, among which were many massive tablets 
of stone covered with columns of strange hieroglyph- 
ics and antique images, picturing a past civilization for 

^ The Hebrew for man is derived from the verb (DIN), to be red. 



2 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the rise and (growth of which modern archseoloeists 
have not yet satisfactorily determined dates. 

In the early ages of the world the Egyptians re- 
corded whatever they deemed important and worthy 
of preservation concerning the principal inhabitants 
of the globe. These inquisitive chroniclers of antedilu- 
vian traditions placed in their archives some remark- 
able information respecting the original people of the 
western hemisphere. The historical value of this in- 
formation is enhanced by the fact that those parts of it 
which seem to be the most improbable are supported 
by similar statements in the Bible, while the less as- 
tounding are verified by the discovery, on the conti- 
nent of the so-called New World, of such remains as 
those which are said to have existed in the country west 
of the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. 

About five hundred and seventy years before the 
Christian era, Solon, the celebrated legislator of Greece, 
visited Egypt, and while there became acquainted with 
some of the erudite priests of the country.^ When the 
latter communicated to him what they had learned 
from the records concerning the ancient peoples of 
the earth, the sage of Greece was so deeply impressed 
with the unquestionable value of this stj-ange informa- 

' Solon, one of the seven sages of Greece, was born about the years, c. 639, 
and died about the year B. c. 558. 

Herodotus, the Greek historian, writing in the fifth century before the Chris- 
tian era, says • " When these were subdued, and Croesus had joined them to the 
Lydians, all the learned men at that time, especially those of Greece, resorted to 
Sardis, which had then reached a high degree of eminence. Among them was 
Solon, an Athenian, who, having made a code of laws for the Athenians at 
their request, absented himself for ten years, having sailed away under pretense 
of seeing the world, that he might not be compelled to abrogate any of the laws 
he had established : for the Athenians could not do it themselves, as they 
were bound by the most solemn oaths to preserve inviolate, for ten years, the 
institutions of Solon. Therefore, having gone abroad for these reasons, as well 
as to see the world, Solon had visited Amasis, in Egypt, and went trom 
there to Croesus, at Sardis." — Herodotus : Clio xxix, xxx. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 3 

tion that he committed it to writing, intending to use 
it in an historical poem which he had undertaken to 
compose.' On his return to Athens he was not per- 
mitted the leisure that was needed to complete his 
agreeable task.'' After his death, the compilations he 
had made in Egypt were, for a long time, preserved by 
his descendants, and at last became the property of 
Plato, the Greek philosopher.^ The latter, when a 
boy, had studiously perused his eminent ancestor's 
manuscript, and when he had reached the last years 
of his scholarly life he could not disengage his 
thoughts from the conviction that it was his personal 
duty to publish its rare information.'* In order, there- 
fore, to give publicity to Solon's valuable compilations, 
Plato, a short time before his own death, wrote that 
part of the unfinished dialogue entitled "Critias, or the 
Atlantic," in which appears the earliest known account 
of the ancient people of the western hemisphere.^ 

" When Solon interrogated the priests, who were 
the most distinguished for their antiquarian knowledge, 
he became aware that neither he nor any of the 
Greeks knew much concerning the history of the first 
ages of the world. On one occasion, for the purpose 

^Plutarch, the Greek biographer, says that Psenophis, the Heliopolitan, and 
Senchis, the Saite, the most learned of the Egyptian priests, were the persons 
who gave Solon this information. — Parallel Lives : Solon. 

'"' If Solon * * * had not considered the writing of poetry a recreation, 
but had made it, as others do, an actual employment, and had completed the 
history which he had brought from Egypt ; and had not been forced to relin- 
quish it by seditions and many other troubles in which he found his country 
involved, I do not think that either Hesiod, Homer, or any other poet would 
have acquired more extensive fame." — Plato : Timasus, or Concerning Nature. 

^ Plato was born about the year B. c. 430 and died about the year B. c. 348. 
He traced his descent from Solon through his mother. 

*" These very writings, indeed, were in the possession of my grandfather, 
and are now in mine, having been made the subject of much study during 
my boyhood." — Plato: Critias, or the Atlantic. 

' Plato : Critias, or the Atlanlic. 



4 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

of inducing the priests to relate some of their ancient 
traditions he began to narrate the early history of his 
own country. * * * Thereupon one of the eldest 
priests exclaimed : ' Solon, Solon, you Greeks are but 
children, and an aged Greek there is none ! ' Solon, 
hearing this, asked, ' What do you mean ? ' The 
priest replied : ' You are all youths in intelligence, 
for you have no old beliefs transmitted by tradition, nor 
any science hoary with age. * * * From the olden 
time we have chronicled whatever has happened in 
your country or in ours, or in any other region known 
to us, — any action, noble or great or in any other way 
remarkable, — and these records are preserved in our 
temples, whereas you and other nations have but 
lately been provided with letters and different things 
required by states. * * * 

" 'Many and great exploits of your state, therefore, 
are here recorded, and call forth our admiration ; never- 
theless, there is one in particular, which in magnitude 
and heroism surpasses them all. For these records 
relate that your state once checked the advance of a 
mighty force which threatened all Europe and Asia, 
moving upon them from the Atlantic Ocean. For at 
that time this ocean was navigable ; and beyond the 
strait [that of Gibraltar], which you in your language 
call the* Pillars of Hercules, was an island larger than 
Libya [Africa] and Asia put together.' At that time 
sea-faring men could pass from it to the other islands, 
and from them to the opposite continent, which ex- 

' The so-called Pillars of Hercules were the two mountains, Calpe and Abyla, 
on the opposite sides of the Strait of Gibraltar. 

" 1 wonder, therefore, at those," says Herodotus, " who have described the 
limits of and divided Libya, Asia, and Europe, for the difference between them 
is trifling : for in length Europe extends along both of them, but respecting 
width, it is evidently not to be compared. Libya shows itself to be sur- 
rounded by water, except so much of it as borders Asia." — Herodotus: Mel- 
pomene xlii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 5 

tended along the real ocean. For the sea [the Medi- 
terranean] inside the strait, which we have already 
mentioned, is like a bay with a narrow entrance, but 
the other sea is rightly called an ocean, and the land, 
which entirely surrounds it, may truly and correctly be 
called a continent. In this large Atlantic island a 
mighty and wonderful confederacy of kings was 
formed, which subdued the whole island and many 
other islands and parts of the continent. Besides this 
it extended its rule, on our side, over Libya as far as 
Egypt, and over Europe as far as Tyrrhenia.^ At 
that time the united forces of this power undertook to 
crush at one blow both your country and ours, and all 
the other countries lying within the strait. ' " ^ 

" ' In the beginning the gods divided the whole 
earth, here and there, into large and small portions, that 
they might obtain temples and sacrifices. In this way 
Poseidon received as his portion the Atlantic island, 
and begat children by a mortal woman (^'^^ ^rr/Tf/s 
yvvaiKOi)^ and placed them on a part of the island 
which we are about to describe.' " ^ 

Incredible as this information concerning the resi- 
dence of a person possessing a divine nature on the 
earth and his matrimonial relationship with a woman 
seems to be, there are some remarkable statements 
in the traditions of the ancients respecting celestial 
beings dwelling among men, and, by marriage with 
their daughters, being the progenitors of an illustrious 
offspring. The Hebrew patriarchs, it is said, had 
personal communications with angels, at different times 
and places. It is related that three, in human form, 
partook of food given them by Abraham, under a 

*Tyrrhenia or Umbria, in Italy, now Tuscany. 
" Plato : Timseus, or Concerning Nature. 
* Plato : Critias, or the Atlantic 



6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

tree, in the plain of Mamre.' Herodotus was told, 
by certain Egyptians, that " gods had been the rulers 
of Egypt and had dwelt among men ; and that one of 
them always had the supreme power." ^ Moses, " who 
was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians," 
describing the people of the antediluvian world, writes : 

" It happened, as men began to multiply on the face 
of the earth and daughters were born to them, the 
sons of the Elohim (DTl^^^H ''^D) [literally, the sons 
of the eminent or mighty ones] saw the daughters of 
man (D"i^^n nU12) that they were fair ; then they 
took for wives among them all whom they loved. * 
* * There were giants (DvDJ) on the earth in 
those days, and also after that the sons of the Elohim 
went in unto the daughters of man and they bare 
children to them, the same became heroes (□"'"HD^) 
who were of old, men of name (Q^ ''S^^i^)." ^ 

" ' Toward the sea, in the middle of the island, was 
a plain,' the priest continued, 'which was very at- 
tractive and fertile. About fifty stadia from the centre 
of the plain was a mountain with sloping sides.* On 
this dwelt one of those men beo^otten from the s^round 
in the beginning (xaTa dpxaS in yr^'i av6p&)v ysyovoTGOv), 
Euenor by name.^ He lived there^ with his wife, 

'Genesis xvi. 7 ; xviii. 1-8, 16-33 I xix. 1-22 ; xxxii. i, 2. 

^ Herodotus : Euterpe cxlii, cxliv. 

' Genesis vi. i, 2, 4. 

" Soc. Do you know that heroes are half-gods ? 

" Herm. What then ? 

" Soc. All of them were doubtless begotten either from a god falling in love 
with a mortal woman, or from a mortal man [falling in love] with a goddess." 
— Plato : Cratylus, or Concerning the Correct Use of Words. 

* A stadium is equal to 600 Greek or 625 Roman feet, or to 606 feet 9 inches 
English measure. 

' Respecting the names of the persons appearing in the narrative Plato ob- 
serves : " We must briefly warn you not to be surprised at hearing Hellenic 
names given to the barbarians ; the cause of this you shall now hear. Solon, 
intending to make use of tliis narrative in his poetry, made an investigation 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 7 

Leucippe. They had an only daughter named Cleito. 
When this girl reached womanhood, her father and 
mother being- dead, Poseidon fell in love with her and 
made her his wife. He encircled the hill on which she 
lived with alternate girdles of land and water, greater 
and less, making two of land and three of water, each 
uniformly distant from the centre of the island, in order 
to render her habitation inaccessible to men, for at that 
time ships and sea-faring were unkno\Vn. Also by his 
divine power he beautifully adorned the centre of the 
island, causing two fountains to shoot upward from 
beneath the earth, one of cold and the other of hot 
water, and making all kinds of food to grow abundantly 
on the earth. He begat and raised ten male children, 
twins, and divided the Atlantic island into ten parts. 
He gave to the first-born of the eldest twins, his 
mother's habitation and the land surrounding it, this 
being the largest and the best. He appointed him 
king over the other children, making the latter princes, 
and giving to each the control of many people and 
extensive domains. He likewise gave names to all 
of his offspring; to the eldest, the king, the name of 
Atlas, in honor of whom both the island and the ocean 
were called Atlantic.^ To the twin born after him 
(who received for his portion the extreme part of the 
island toward the Pillars of Hercules as far as the 
region now called in that country Gadeirica), he gave 
the appellation, which we Greeks call Eumelus, but the 
people of that country Gadeira.^ He called the first of 

mto the signification of the names, aad found that the early Egyptians who re- 
corded these facts transferred these names into their own language ; and he 
again receiving the meaning of each name transcribed it into our tongue." 

^ '' Ilaffa rj vijffo'S tots 7tekayo<^ fCjfK STroavvjAiav, 'ArXav- 
mtov Xax^evJ' 

^ Gadeira, an ancient city built, it is said, by the Phoenicians, fifteen cen- 
turies before the Christian era, on the site of Cadiz, Spain. 



8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the second-born twins, Ampheres, the second Eudse- 
mon ; of the third pair, he called the first-born Mnesis, 
and the second, Autochthon ; of the fourth pair, the 
first Elasippus, and the younger Mestor ; and of the 
fifth pair, to the first was given the name of Azaes, and 
to the last, Diaprepes, 

" ' For many generations these and their descendants 
were the rulers and the inhabitants of the islands in 
the ocean, and, as it has been said, they extended their 
authority over all the country as far as Egypt and Tyr- 
rhenia. By far the most distinguished was the race of 
Atlas ; and the eldest king belonging to it always 
handed down in succession the government to his 
eldest son. All these kings in turn possessed immense 
wealth, such as was never known to belong to royalty 
or will be likely hereafter. They were provided with 
all things which, in a city or elsewhere, are worth 
having. Large revenues were received by them from 
foreign countries under their rule, but the greatest re- 
sources came from the island. First were such ores as 
are due in mines in a crude condition, or need to be 
smelted, particularly the metal orichalcum,'- which is 
now known only by name, but formerly was of great 
value. This was dug from the earth irt many parts of 
the island, being prized above all the metals then 
known, except gold. The island also produced an 
abundance of wood for building purposes, and fur- 
nished food for wild and tame animals. Vast numbers 
of elephants were on the island, for there was abundant 
subsistence for all animals which feed in marshes and 
along lakes, on mountains and plains, and likewise for 
this animal, which by nature is the largest and most 

' OpSlXCxXno?, ore of copper. From opSW?^ mountain, and ;j;«'Ako5'^ 
brass. 



I3ISC0VERIES OF AMERICA. 9 

voracious of all.^ And whatever fragrant plants the 
earth produces, whether roots, or grasses, or woods, or 
exuding gums, or flowers, or fruits, grew there and 
were developed to perfection. The island besides pro- 
duced such cultivated fruits and dry edible fruits as we 
use for food and call vegetables ; also the fruits which 
trees bear and are used for drinks, meats, and oint- 
ments ; and those also which have a hard shell, used 
in sport and pleasure, that are collected with trouble, 
together with dainty fruits for dessert, which provoke 
the appetite or please the sick ; — all these that once- 
existing and tropic island, sacred and delightful, pro- 
duced in surprising and infinite quantities. Obtaining 
all these from the soil, the inhabitants employed them- 
selves in building temples, royal palaces, harbors, and 
wharves in all parts of the country, constructing them 
as follows : 

" * First of all, the people residing in and about that 
ancient metropolis bridged over those girdles of water, 
making a causeway to and from the royal palace. In 
this place, which had been the residence of the gods 
and their ancestors, they, at the beginning, erected the 
palace ; and each [king] in turn, receiving it from his 
predecessor, and further embellishing the ornamental 
parts, continually surpassed the one before him, until 
they made the building very attractive to the sight, on 
account of its size and the beauty of its elaborations. 
They dug a canal, beginning at the sea, three plethra"" 
broad, a hundred feet deep, and fifty stadia in length, 
to the outermost girdle, and thus made a channel to it 
from the sea as into a harbor, by enlarging its mouth 
sufficiently to admit the largest vessels. Besides this, 

^ The remains of mammoths or elephants, elephas priinigenus, have been ex- 
humed in different parts of the continent of America. 
^ A plethron is equal to a hundred feet. 



10 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

they separated by aqueducts the girdles of land which 
separated those of water, so that a trireme ^ could be 
taken from one girdle of water to another, arching the 
girdles of land to allow a water-way beneath them ; for 
the banks of the girdles of land rose to a height con- 
siderably above the water. And the greatest of these 
girdles into which the sea flowed was three stadia in 
width, and the girdle of land next to it was of the same 
width. The second girdle of water was two stadia in 
width and the second girdle of land the same. The 
last girdle of water, environing the centre of the isl- 
and, was only one stadium wide, and the island, on 
which the king's palace stood, had a diameter of 
five stadia. This island, as well as the girdles of 
land, and the bridge (which was a plethron in width), 
they inclosed on the sides with stone walls, erecting 
towers and gates at intervals on the aqueducts where 
the water passed through [the girdles of land]. The 
stone for the walls they quarried within the limits of 
the island, both in the centre, and inside and outside 
the girdles ; one kind of it was white, a second black, 
a third red ; and by thus quarrying they made at the 
same time openings which served for two docks, having 
likewise a covering of rock. Of the buildings, some 
were of plain structure, while others they built of a 
composite style of architecture, using the different 
kinds of stone as pleased them most, thus realizing a 
pleasure becoming their natures. And they covered 
the whole circuit of the wall round the extreme outer 
girdle with bronze, applying it as they would plaster. 
The next wall inside of it they covered with melted tin, 
and the wall round the citadel with orichalcum that has 
a fiery resplendence. 

' A trireme, a large-sized boat willi three rows or benches of oars on its 
sides. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. ii 

" ' Further, the royal palace within the citadel was 
constructed in the followinof manner : In the centre 
of it a temple was erected, difficult of access, sacred 
to Cleito and Poseidon, surrounded by an inclosure of 
gold ; for on this spot they begat and raised the race 
of the ten kings, and where also their descendants, 
making annual collections from all the ten allotments, 
offered seasonable sacrifices to each one. 

*' ' The temple of Poseidon was a stadium in length, 
three plethra in breadth, and of a proportionate height, 
having a somewhat barbaric appearance. All the out- 
side of the temple, except the pinnacles, they lined 
with silver, but the pinnacles they covered with gold. 
Respecting the interior, the ceiling was wholly of ivory, 
variegated with gold and orichalctim, and all the other 
parts, the walls, the pillars, and the pavements, they 
covered with orichalctim. They also placed in the 
temple golden statues. The one of the god stood in a 
chariot driving with reins six-winged horses. It was 
of such size that the head of the god touched the 
ceiling, and surrounding the statue were a hundred 
nereids on dolphins ; for the people of that day thought 
that this was their number. The temple also contained 
many other statues dedicated to private persons. On 
the outside of the temple golden images were also 
placed of all the men and women that were descended 
from the ten kings, and many other large statues, both 
of kings and of private people, both from the metropolis 
and from the foreio^n countries over which the kines 
had dominion. There was also an altar, in size and 
elaboration corresponding to these ornaments ; and 
there were palaces also whose grandeur was in 
keeping with the greatness of the empire and also 
with the splendor of the temple. 



12 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

** ' They had fountains from cold and hot springs of 
which there were many, the water being- suited in 
every way to their use on account of its sweetness and 
purity. Around these springs they made their resi- 
dences and well-watered plantations, together with 
their reservoirs, some open to the heavens, but the 
others, for use in winter, roofed over for warm baths. 
The kings' bathing-houses and those of private per- 
sons were separated, as well as those of the women. 
There were others for horses and other draught cattle, 
each provided with the requisite means of cleanliness. 
The stream flowing from these they conducted to the 
grove of Poseidon, where there were all kinds of trees 
reaching a wonderful height on account of the fertility 
of the soil, and then led it away by aqueducts to the 
outer girdles of water. There they also erected a 
large number of temples, dedicated to many different 
gods, and many gardens and gymnasia, one for men, 
and others separately for horses, on the two girdles of 
land. To test the speed of the horses there was a 
race-course in the middle of the largest girdle of land, 
a stadium in width, that extended around its entire cir- 
cumference. Around it on all sides were barracks for 
the household troops, corresponding to^ their number. 
To the more faithful of these troops quarters were 
assigned on the smaller girdle of land closer to the 
citadel, while those who excelled all the others in loy- 
alty had quarters given them within the citadel, near 
the residences of the kings. The docks were filled 
with triremes and the equipments for triremes ; and 
the triremes were all adequately provided with them. 
These were the arrangements for the protection of the 
palace of the kings. On crossing the three outer har- 
bors one found a wall which extended entirely around 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 13 

the island, beginning- at the sea, everywhere fifty 
stadia distant from the greatest girdle and harbor, and 
inclosed the entrance to the canal and the entrance to 
the sea. The whole of this part of the girdle of land 
was covered with many and densely-built dwellings. 
The canal and the largest harbor were filled with 
vessels and traders, coming from all parts, and these, 
on account of their number, made a babel of voices, a 
commotion, arid a din all through the day and the 
night. 

" ' We have now related from memory a description 
of the city and its ancient habitations ; now we must 
attempt to describe the nature of the other parts of 
the country and the employment of the people. First, 
then, the whole region was said to be exceedingly 
high and precipitous toward the sea, and the plain, 
encircling the city, surrounded by mountains sloping 
down to the sea, being level and smooth, extended 
in one direction three thousand stadia, and the central 
part, from the sea, more than two thousand stadia. 
And this part of the island extended toward the south, 
in an opposite direction from the north. The moun- 
tains around it were, at that time, also celebrated, 
exceeding in number, size, and attractiveness all those 
of the present day ; having on them many hamlets 
together with villages, as well as rivers, lakes, and 
marshes, furnishing ample supplies of food for all cattle, 
both tame and wild ; with timber of different kinds and 
in great quantity for every special purpose. The plain, 
by nature, being as described, was improved in the 
following way by many kings through a long course of 
time : It was almost square in extent, generally 
straight and oblong, and where it terminated they 
bounded it by digging a canal around it. Concerning 



14 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the depth, breadth, and length of which for a public 
work, besides other concomitant undertakings, we can 
scarcely believe what was said, still we must tell what 
we learned. The canal was excavated to the depth of 
a plethrum, and the breadth was a stadium in e very- 
part, the entire excavation round the plain being ten 
thousand stadia in length. This canal, receiving the 
water of the streams coming from the mountains, con- 
ducted it all around the plain and near to the city, and 
finally to the sea. From above, likewise, straight 
canals were cut about a hundred feet broad along the 
plain, back into the canal near the sea; distant from 
one another about one hundred stadia ; and it was by 
these canals that timber from the mountains was 
brought to the city, and on which the rest of the 
shipping trade was done ; transverse canals of com- 
munication beine cut into the others and toward the 
city. Their harvest they gathered twice in a year ; in 
winter availing themselves of the rains, and in summer 
irrieatine the land from the canals. 

" Tt was ordered for the men on the plain fit for mil- 
itary service that each individual leader should have an 
allotment of land ; each allotment amounting in extent 
to a hundred stadia ; the whole number of allotments 
being sixty thousand. It is said that many men from 
the mountains and other parts of the country were 
assigned, according to their dweUings and villages, cer- 
tain tracts by their respective leaders. Each leader 
was required to furnish for war the sixth part of a 
war-chariot (to make the number often thousand), two 
riding horses, and a two-horse chariot without a 
driver's seat, having a mounted charioteer to guide 
the horses, with another rider to dismount and fight at 
the side of them ; also two heavy-armed men, two 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 15 

archers, two slingers, three light-armed soldiers, the 
same number of stone-shooters and javelin-men, be- 
sides four seamen to make up the crews of one thou- 
sand two hundred vessels. Thus were the military 
affairs of this city arranged. Respecting those of the 
nine other allotments, there were different regulations, 
which it would be too tedious to narrate. 

" ' The following were the systems of official ser- 
vices and honors : Each of the ten kings ruled su- 
preme over the people and the laws in his own allot- 
ment and over his own city, constraining and punishing 
whom he pleased.' As the law was handed down to 
them, the government and commonwealth in each 
allotment were regulated by the injunctions of Posei- 
don. Inscriptions [of this law] were made by the first 
[kings] on a column of orichalcum, which was placed 
in the centre of the island, in the temple of Poseidon, 
where the kings consulted together every fifth year, 
(which they afterward changed to every sixth year,) 
each king representing at these meetings the entire 
kingdom and its subdivisions. The kings, when they 
were assembled, deliberated on matters respecting the 
common weal, and inquired what transgressions each 
had committed, and each respectively rendered his 
decision. Before they sat in judgment they gave one 

* " This agreement of the traditions of the most diverse peoples manifests 
itself in a striking manner when compared with the number assigned by the 
Bible to the antediluvian patriarchs. There are ten in the account in Genesis, 
and a singular persistence reproduces this number of ten in the legends of a very 
great number of nations, whose primitive ancestors are still enveloped in the 
mist of fables. * * * The preserved fragments of the celebrated historical 
papyrus of Turin, containing a list of Egyptian dynasties traced in hieratic 
writing, seem clearly to indicate that the editor of this canon gives ten gods, who 
in the beginning ruled men." — Les Origines de 1' Histoire d' apres la Bible et 
les Traditions des Peuples Orientaux, par Fran9ois Lenormant, professeur d' 
archeologie pres la Bibliotheque nationale. Deuxieme edition, Paris, 1880. 
pp. 214, 215, 227. 



i6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

another pledges, according- to the following custom : 
The ten, when they were assembled in the temple, 
after invoking the god to receive their sacrifice propi- 
tiously, went swordless, with staves and nooses, among 
the bulls grazing within the temple inclosure, and the 
bull they took they brought to the column and slaugh- 
tered it, the head of the bull being under the inscrip- 
tions. Besides the laws on the column, there was a 
malediction written containing denunciations of evil on 
the disobedient. When, therefore, in compliance with 
their laws, they sacrificed and burned all the limbs of 
the bull, they filled a goblet with the blood of the 
animal, and threw the remainder into the fire, in order 
to purify the column. Afterward dipping from the 
goblet with golden cups, they poured libations of 
blood on the fire, and swore to do justice according to 
the laws on the column, to punish any one who had 
previously transgressed them, besides swearing that 
they themselves would never afterward willingly trans- 
gress the inscribed laws, or rule or obey any ruler 
governing otherwise than according to his father's laws. 
Then after invoking these denunciations on themselves 
and their descendants, and after drinking from the cup 
and depositing it in the temple of the god, and sitting 
the necessary time at supper, they, as soon as it was 
dark and the fire of the sacrifice had ceased to burn, 
dressed themselves in beautiful dark-blue robes, and 
sat down on the ground, near the embers of the sac- 
rifice, over which they had sworn. All the fire in the 
temple having been extinguished for the night, they 
then mutually judged one another respecting any accu- 
sation of transgressing the laws. After their acts of 
judgment were ended, and daylight had come, they 
inscribed their decisions on a golden tablet and depos- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 17 

ited it and their dresses in the temple as memorials. 
There were also many other special laws respecting 
the privileges of the kings. The principal ones were 
that they should never wage war upon one another, 
that all should lend their aid when any attempt was 
made in their cities to destroy the royal race, that they 
should consult toQ^ether as their ancestors had done re- 
specting the right course to be pursued in war and in 
other matters, and that they should allot the govern- 
ment of the empire to the Atlantic race. They did 
not allow the king, however, any authority to put to 
death any of his kinsmen, unless the execution was 
approved by more than five of the ten.' "' 

The priest also related that it was " about nine 
thousand years ago that war was proclaimed between 
those dwelling outside the Pillars of Hercules and all 
those within them."^ Athens " was the leader of the 
latter people and directed the operations of the war, 
and the kinoes of the Atlantic island were the com- 
manders of the forces of the former."^ 

" 'But in a later age,' said the priest, *by extraordi- 
nary earthquakes and deluges, bringing destruction in 
a single day and night, the whole of your formidable 
race was at once sunk under the earth, and the 
Atlantic island in like manner plunged beneath the sea 
and concealed from view; therefore that sea is, at 
present, neither passable nor to be traced out, being 

^ Plato : Critias, or the Atlantic. 

^ " These figures of the mythic Egyptian chronology are still very imper- 
fectly known to us — too little indeed to affirm any thing satisfactorily concern- 
ing the principle of their construction, * * * We must, therefore, wait for 
some new discovery, like that of a royal canon similar to the one of Turin, in 
good condition, before we can make a thorough examination of the principle 
of the cyclic periods with which Egypt began her annals. " — Les Origines de 
r Histoire. Lenormant. p. 287. 

^ Plato : Critias, or the Atlantic. 



i8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

blocked up with a great depth of mud made by the 
sunken island.' " * 

The history of the Atlantic people as it was known 
to the ancient Egyptians ends with this catastrophe. 
The inference of the priest that the mud of the sub- 
merged island made the Atlantic impassable is seem- 
ingly an assertion without any basis of fact. Had he 
said that the submergence of some of the islands west 
of the Pillars of Hercules obliterated the marked sea- 
path between the continents of the two hemispheres, 
this statement would have strictly accorded with what 
he had said before, that " sea-faring men, at that time, 
could pass from it [the Atlantic island] to the other 
islands, and from them to the opposite continent."^ 
The disappearance of the islands, in sight of which sea- 
men had steered their galleys, at once isolated the 
peoples of the two hemispheres. Thus it happened, 
in the course of centuries, that the aborigines of 

' Plato : Timceus, or Concerning Nature. 

^ The ships of the ancients, in the time of Herodotus, were vessels propelled 
by oars and sails. Describing those used by the Egyptians on the Nile, he 
says: "Their ships in which they convey merchandise are made of the 
acacia, which in shape is similar to the Cyrenaean lotus, and its exudation is 
gum. From this acacia they cut planks about two cubits in length, and join 
them together as they do bricks, building their ships in the following manner : 
They fasten the planks of two cubits length to stout ^d long ties ; when 
they have thus built the hulls, they lay rowing benches across them. They make 
no use of ribs, but caulk the seams inside with byblus. They make only one 
rudder, and that is driven through the keel. They use a mast of acacia, and 
sails of byblus. These vessels cannot sail against the current of the stream 
unless a fair wind prevails, but are towed from the shore. They are thus carried 
down the stream : There is a hurdle made of tamarisk, wattled with a band of 
reeds, and a stone bored through the middle, of about two talents in weight ; 
of these two, the hurdle is fastened to a cable, and let down at the prow of the 
vessel to be carried on by the stream ; and the stone by another cable at the 
stern ; and by this means the hurdle, by the stream bearing hard upon it, moves 
quickly and draws along the ' baris', (for this is the name given to these vessels,) 
but the stone, being dragged at the stern, and sunk to the bottom, keeps the 
vessel in its course. They have a great number of these vessels, and some of 
them carry many thousand talents." — Euterpe xcvi. 

The vessels of the Phcenicians were of a better build, but they also were 
fitted out with oars and sails. — Ezekiel xxvii. 3-g. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 19 

America passed out of the recollection of the inhabi- 
tants of the so-called Old World as an early-known 
people. 

The writer of the first book of the Bible relates 
that when " Yahveh saw the wickedness of man was 
great upon the earth and every imagination of the 
thoughts of his heart only evil continually, '''' ''' * 
it repented him of having made man on the earth, 
and he was grieved in his heart. And Yahveh said, 
' I will exterminate man whom I have created from 
the surface of the ground.' "^ The information con- 
tained in these words of the learned Hebrew so closely 
correspond to that imparted to Solon by the Egyptian 
priest concerning the subsequent degeneracy of the 
primitive people of the earth, that it would seem as 
if it had been derived from the same source. " ' For 
many generations,' said the priest, ' so long as the 
god-nature continued in them, they remained obedient 
to the laws and were happily influenced by it. But 
when the divine nature became extinct by the domi- 
nance and constant ascendency of the human, and the 
habits of men overpowered them, * * * they de- 
ported themselves in an unbecoming way. * * * 
Therefore, Zeus, the god of gods, who rules justly 
and searches out such things, perceiving an illustrious 
people miserably depraved, and intending to inflict 
punishment on them that they might become better 
fitted to command their appetites and passions, col- 
lected all the gods into their own most holy habitation, 
vv^hich, being in the centre of the universe, commands 
a view of all things having a part in generation ; and 
having assembled them, he said * * * ' " ^ 

' Genesis vi. 5, 6, 7. 
^ Plato : Critias, or the Atlantic. 

Vide The Works of Plato. Bohn's ed. London, 1849. vol. ii. Trans- 
lated by Henry Davis, pp. 413-429. 



20 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

An inscription on the interior walls of the tomb of 
Seti I. of Egypt contains a statement concerning a 
council of the gods held to consider what punishment 
should be visited upon the depraved descendants of 
the eod Ra, which is similar to the declaration of the 
last clause of Plato's unfinished dialogue.' Lenormant, 
commenting upon the information contained in the 
inscription, remarks : 

" The Egyptians admitted a destruction of the primi- 
tive men by the gods on account of their rebellion and 
sins. This event was recorded in a chapter of the sacred 
books of Tahout, — certain hermetic books of the Egyp- 
tian priesthood, — that had been graven on the walls of 
one of the most isolated rooms of the burial crypts of 
King Seti I., at Thebes. The text of it has been pub- 
lished and translated by Edward Naville.'' 

" The scene is placed at the end of the reign of the 
god Ra. * * * Incensed by the wickedness and 
the crimes of the men whom he had begotten, the god 
summons the other gods to consult with them in the 
utmost secrecy, ' in order that mankind might not 
know it, and that their hearts might not be dismayed.' 

" Said Ra to Noun : ' Thou, the eldest of the gods, 
of whom I am sprung, and you, ancient gods, behold 
the men who have been begotten by me. They speak 
words against me. Tell me what you would do in this 
crisis. Behold, I have waited, and I have not destroyed 
them before having heard your counsel.' " ^ 

Singular as the fact may seem, the state, polity, 
and genius of the people of the western hemisphere 

' The date of the accession of Seti I. or Sethos I. is variously given. M. 
Champollion Figeac places it in 1473 B.C. Mure thinks it cannot be earlier 
than 1410 nor later than 1400 B.C. 

" Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archreology. t. iv. pp. 1-19. 

•Les Origines de 1' Histoire. Lenormant. pp. 448, 449. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 21 

described in the records of Egypt reappear in the 
strange features of the civilization of Mexico, and in the 
vestiges of its aborigines, which amazed the Spaniards 
who accompanied Hernando Cortes into the interior 
of the country, in the early part of the sixteenth cen- 
tury. The remarkable accounts given by Bernal Diaz 
and other contemporary writers respecting the people, 
the kings, the cities, the palaces, the temples, and the 
public works seen by the Spanish invaders, verify, in 
many ways, the declarations of the Egyptian priests 
concerninof the Atlantic race/ 

For centuries after the disappearance of the islands 
lying in the ocean west of the Pillars of Hercules, the 
wide expanse of water, dashing its foaming surges on 
the shores of the continents of the two hemispheres, 
was not only unexplored but was deemed impassable. 
Superstition filled its misty distances with frightful 
chimeras and geographical absurdities. About the 
beginning of the Middle Ages the vikings of Northern 
Europe were venturing across the North Sea in their 
single-masted, many-oared galleys. Until this time 
the superstitious seamen of Scandinavia had not at- 
tempted to sail beyond the sight of land to any great dis- 
tance. Their first lessons in navigating the narrow 
expanse of the the North Sea were taken when their 
boats were unexpectedly carried away from the rugged 

^ Vide Historia Verdadera de la Conqvista de la Nueva-Espana, Escrita 
por el Capitan Bernal Diaz del Castillo, vno de sus Conquistadores, En 
Madrid, 1632. 

Antiquities of Mexico : comprising fac-similes of ancient Mexican paint- 
ings and hieroglyphics, preserved in the Royal libraries of Paris, Berlin, and 
Dresden ; in the Imperial library at Vienna ; in the Vatican library ; in the 
Borgian museum at Rome ; in the library of the Institute at Bologna ; and in 
the Bodleian library at Oxford. Together with the monuments of New Spain, 
by M. Dupaix ; with their respective scales of measurements and accompanying 
descriptions. The whole illustrated by many valuable inedited manuscripts, 
by Lord Kingsborough. In nine volumes. London, 1831-1848. 



22 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

coast of Norway by tempestuous winds to the Het- 
land^ and Fer oe'' (Far islands). Whatever fears of 
permanent exile on these unexplored islands may at 
first have alarmed the deported Northmen, these 
were dispelled by the cheering suggestion that when 
the wind blew from the west they could return to their 
own country. As soon as the wind blew eastwardly 
they put to sea. Using their sails and oars they safely 
reached the western shore of Scandinavia. Frequent 
experiences of this kind in time emboldened the 
Norwegian seamen to undertake voyages to the 
westward islands in search of booty. Having no 
compass to guide their galleys thither, they carried 
with them hawks or ravens, and when uncertain re- 
specting the course of their vessels, they let loose a 
cast of these birds, which instinctively flew to the 
nearest land. Thitherward they steered, and finding 
that it was their destination or not, they secured what- 
ever plunder they could and departed. Not unfre- 
quently the vessels of the Norse sea-kings were lost 
in storms on the wild waters of the Atlantic, or 
wrecked on the inhospitable shores of remote islands. 
It is said that Naddoddr, a Norwegian pirate, was 
drifted in his ship by an adverse wind, in 860, to Ice- 
land, which he called Sneeland (Snowland).^ It is 

' Now called the Shetland islands, but the name is printed on the early 
maps Hetland ; from Swedish hct, hot, and land, land. The group lies about 
180 miles from Norway, between 59° 50' and 60° 50' north latitude. 

" The Fer 6e or Far islands lie about 170 miles northwest of the Shet- 
land group, and are between 61° 20' and 62° 25' north latitude. The name is 
derived ixQxa. fer, far, (Swedish,) and oe, islands. 

^ Iceland lies between latitude 6.3° 24' and 66° 33' N. and longitude 13° 
31' and 24° 17' W. It is one hundred and sixty miles east of Greenland, six 
hundred west of Norway, and two hundred and fifty northwest of the Fer oe, 
or Far islands. 



SIGURUI STEPHANII TERRARUM HYPERBOREARUM DELINEATIO, 

ANNO 1570. 




Delineation of the Hyperborean Regions, by Sigurd Stephanus in the year 1570. (Size of the 

original, 6| inches square.) 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 23 

also related that when the famous viking, Floki, was 
lost in his vessel in stormy weather, between the 
islands of Faroe and Sneeland, in 865, he let fly three 
ravens, one of which flew back to the Faroe islands, 
the second returned to the ship, and the third winged 
its way toward the more northerly island which the 
perplexed Northman was seeking. This sturdy sea- 
man described the new country as volcanic and sterile, 
glacial and cold, and appropriately called it Island 
(Iceland). His companions, however, reported that 
they had found it to have a delightful climate and a 
fertile soil. One, wishing to describe its general fruit- 
fulness in a more attractive way, averred that " milk 
dropped from every plant and butter from every 
twig."' In a short time a course to Iceland was 
marked out by the early rovers of the North Sea, who, 
before the close of the ninth century, planted a colony 
on the bleak coast of this icy island, the most westerly 
land hitherto discovered by the fearless seamen of 
Scandinavia.^ 

But Iceland did not long remain the most remote 
part of the western world known to the people of 
Europe. Gunnbjorn, a Norwegian, driven westward in 
his ship beyond Iceland, in a storm, in 876, descried 
land looming up along the western horizon. In the 
latter part of the tenth century, Eric the Red, whom 
the public assembly of Iceland had declared an outlaw, 
determined to go in search of the land seen by Gunn- 

^ History of the Northmen, by Henry Wheaton. London, 1831. pp. 17, 18. 

Iceland, or the journal of a residence in that island, during the years 1814 
and 1815, by Ebenezer Henderson, vol. i. Intro, pp. xv. and 308. 

' " Men of experience say, who have been born in Greenland, and have 
recently come from Greenland, that from Stadt, in the north part of Norway, to 
Horns, on the east coast of Iceland, is seven days' sailing directly westward." 
— Antiqvitates Americanae, sive scriptores septentrionales rerum Ante-Colum- 
bianaruna in America. Edidit Socielas Regia Antiqvariorum Septentrionalium. 
Hafnias, 1837. Ivar Bardsen's treatise, p. 302. 



24 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

bjorn. He sailed from Iceland about the year 981, and 
came in sight of the coast of Greenland, at a place 
called MidjokuL' He then steered southward to see 
whether the country were habitable. He passed the 
first winter near the middle of the site of the eastern 
settlement {cystri bygd)."" In the following summer 
he reached the western uninhabited region {vestri 
tibygd),'^ and gave names to many places. As soon as 
the ice disappeared, at the close of the second winter, 
and the sea was again navigable, he returned to Ice- 
land, and called the country which he had explored 
Graenland (Greenland), "because" he said, "people 
will be influenced to immigrate to it, if the land bears 
an attractive name." Among those whom Eric in- 
duced to return with him as colonists to Greenland 
was a Norwegian, named Herjulf. Thirty-five ships 
{sJdpa) filled with emigrants set sail from Iceland for 
the newly explored country, but only fourteen of the 
vessels reached the places where the colonists were to 
dwell. Eric the Red settled at Brattahlid, and Herjulf 
erected his house on a cape called Herjulfsnes (Her- 
julf's nose, or promontory).-* "This was fifteen vv^inters 

' " He who sails from Iceland [to Greenland] must steer his course from 
Snefelsnes, which is twelve nautical miles {tholldt soes) farther to the west than 
the mentioned Reychenes, and for a day and a night he will sail due west, but 
then he must steer to the southwest to avoid the ice that adheres to Gunnbjorn's 
rocks. Then he must hold his course one day and one night to the northwest, 
which will bring him straight to that high land of Greenland called Hvarf, 
under which lie the mentioned Herjulfsnes and Sand hafln." 

" They who wish to sail direct from Bergen [in Norway] to Greenland with- 
out touching Iceland, must sail due west until they find themselves twelve 
nautical miles {xii tiger soes) south of Reychenes, a promontory on the south 
coast of Iceland, and by holding this course toward the west they will come to 
the high land of Greenland called Hvarf." — Antiq. Amer. Ivar Bardsen's 
treatise, pp. 304, 305 ; 303, 304. 

' Bygd, inhabited land, a place of residence, an abode. 

^ ^h'S'^i ^'^ unpeopled tract, desert. 

* " A day before you descry the said Hvarf you ought to see another high 
mountain called Hvidserk. Under these two mountains — Hvard and Hvidserk 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 25 

before Christianity was established by law in Iceland." ^ 
Among the traditions preserved of the voyages of 
the Northmen in the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth 
centuries, there are several that have caused con- 
siderable controversy respecting the historical and 
geographical value of the information contained in 
them ; for a number of eminent writers have made 
use of this information to show that the Northmen 
were the first discoverers of America and the ex- 
plorers of a large part of the eastern coast of the 
continent.'' Althouorh these sagfas or legends of Ice- 
land were unrecorded for several centuries, the manu- 
scripts which now contain them are assumed to have 
been written in a manner so precise that translations 
of their text are presented to prove that the Norse 
vikings not only made frequent voyages to America, 
but that they have left definite and reliable informa- 
tion respecting the parts of the coast visited by them. 

— is a promontory {nes) called Herjulfsnes, near which is a harbor called Sand- 
haffn. * * * The inhabited part of Greenland lying eastwartlly, next to 
Herjulfsnes, is called Skagefjord." — Antiq. Amer. Ivar Bardsen's treatise, pp. 

304.305- 

* Christianity, it is said, was introduced in Iceland in the year looo. — 
Antiq. Amer. pp. lo, ii, 14, and note b. The discovery of America by the 
Northmen. By North Ludlow Beamish. London, 1841. pp. 47, 48. 

° The traditions of the voyages of Bjarni, the son of Herjulf, and of Leif, 
the son of Eric the Red, are contained in a large folio of manuscripts found in 
the seventeenth century, in a monastery on the island called Flato, north of 
Breidafjord, in Iceland. This book of Flato was purchased, about the year 
1660, by Bishop Brynjulf Sveinson of Skalholt, in Iceland, and was sent by him 
as a gift to King Frederic III. of Denmark, and is now in the Royal Library 
of Copenhagen. A part of the inscription on the first page of the volume 
bears this translation : " This book, Jonn, the son of Hakon, owns. * * * 
The priest, Jonn, the son of Thord, wrote out the narrative concerning Eric, 
the traveller, and the histories of each of the Olafs ; and the priest, Magnus, 
the son of Thorhall, wrote out that which follows, also that which precedes, 
and illuminated the whole. God Almighty and the Holy Virgin Mary bless 
those who wrote and him who dictated." 

It is supposed that these traditions, which are finely engrossed in Ice- 
landic on vellum, contained in the Codex Flateyensis, were compiled between 
the years 1387 and 1395. — Antiq. Amer. pp. 1-4. 



26 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Other distinofuished writers consider these traditions as 
too mythical and vague to be deemed vakiable, either 
historically or geographically, and argue that what is 
thought to describe the physical features and pro- 
ductions of parts of the present territory of the eastern 
coast of the United States describes the topography 
and fruits of Greenland. A brief narration of the most 
important particulars of the voyages of several of the 
Northmen who have been regarded as the first discov- 
erers of parts of the continent of America, will suffice 
to show the grounds upon which rest many of the 
arguments that have been advanced to support the 
opinion that these persons had landed upon its shores 
and explored a great extent of its Atlantic coast. 

It is said in the sao-a of Eric the Red and of the 
Greenlanders,' that when Herjulf sailed, in the spring 
of 985, from Iceland to Greenland, his son Bjarni was 
in Norway. When tlie latter, in the following summer 
returned to Iceland, and learned that his father had 
emigrated to the country recently explored by Eric 
the Red, he determined to sail to it and pass the winter 
with his father, as had been his custom for many years. 
He evidently had some misgivings respecting the suc- 
cess of the contemplated voyage, for he said to his 
companions : " Our going there will be devoid of 
common-sense, since not one of us has traversed the 
Greenland Sea." "Nevertheless," as the tradition 
runs, •' as soon as they had fitted for the voyage, they 
intrusted themselves to the ocean, and made sail three 
days, until the land passed out of their sight from the 
water. But then the bearing winds ceased to blow, 
and northern breezes and a fog succeeded. Then they 
were drifted about for many days and nights, not 

' Thaettlr af Eireki Rauda ck Cracnlendivgum. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 27 

knowing whither they tended. After this the light of 
the sun was seen, and they were able to survey the 
regions of the sky. Now they carried sail, and steered 
this day before they beheld land." They sailed near 
to it, and "soon saw that the country was not moun- 
tainous, but covered with trees and diversified with 
little hills. They left the land on their larboard side, 
and let the stern turn from the shore. Then they 
sailed two days before they saw another land [or 
region], * * * They then approached it, and 
saw that it was level and covered with trees. Then, 
the favorable wind having ceased blowing, the sailors 
said that it seemed to them that it would be well to 
land there, but Bjarni was unwilling to do so. * * * 
He bade them make sail, which was done. They 
turned the prow from the land, and sailed out into the 
open sea, where for three days they had a favorable 
south-southwest wind. They saw a third land [or 
region], but it was high and mountainous and covered 
with glaciers. * * * They did not lower sail, but 
holding their course along the shore, they found it to 
be an island. Again they turned the stern against the 
land, and made sail for the high sea, having the same 
wind, which gradually increasing, Bjarni ordered the 
sails to be shortened, forbidding the use of more 
canvas than the ship and her outfit could conveniently 
bear. Thus they sailed for four days, when they saw a 
fourth land" [or region], which was Greenland, where 
Bjarni found his father. "^ 

Bjarni's discoveries, it is said, were often the sub- 
ject of conversation among the Northmen. It is 
further related that Leif, the son of Eric the Red, pur- 
chased Bjarni's ship and set sail in it with thirty-five 

'^Bjarni leitadi Graenlands. — Antiq. Amer. pp. 17-25. Discovery of 
America. Beamish, pp. 47, 48. 



28 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

men from Brattahlid about the year looo to seek new 
lands. Nothing is told in the tradition concerning the 
direction in which these Northmen sailed, only that 
" they first came to the land [or region] last seen by 
Bjarni. They steered toward the shore, cast anchor, 
put out the boat, and went on land, where they saw no 
herbage. The whole country was filled with high icy 
mountains, and fi'om the sea all the way to the icy 
mountains was a plain of flat stones." Leif called the 
region Helluland. ' 

When Leif and his companions departed from 
Helluland, it is related that they "put out to sea and 
found another land [or region]. This was a level 
country and covered with trees." Leif named it 
Markland. ^ 

As related in the saga, when they departed from 
Markland, " they sailed on the high sea, having a 
northeast wind, and were two days at sea before they 
saw land. They steered toward it and touched the 
island lying before the north part of the land. When 
they went on land they surveyed it, for by good for- 
tune the weather was serene. They found the grass 
sprinkled with dew, and it happened by chance that 
they touched the dew with their hands and carried them 
to their mouths and perceived that it had a sweet taste 
which they had not before noticed. Then they re- 
turned to the ship and sailed through a bay lying be- 
tween the island and a tongue of land running toward 
the north. Steering a course to the west shore, they 
passed the tongue of land. Here when the tide ebbed 

' From hella, a flat stone. 

Certain writers believe that Newfoundland was called Helluland by the 
Northmen. The island lies about six hundred miles south of Greenland. 

^ Nova Scotia is supposed by some writers to be the region named Mark- 
land by the Northmen. It is about four hundred miles southwest of New- 
foundland, 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 29 

there were very narrow shoals. When the ship got 
aground there were shallows of great extent between 
the vessel and the receded sea. So great was the 
desire of the men to go on land that they were unwill- 
ing to stay on board until the returning tide floated 
the ship. They went ashore at a place where a river 
flowed out from a lake. When the tide floated the 
ship, they took the boat and rowed to the vessel and 
brouofht her into the river and then into the lake. 
Here they anchored, carried the luggage from the 
ship, and built dwellings. Afterward they held a con- 
sultation and resolved to remain at this place during 
the winter. Then they erected large buildings. There 
were not only many salmon in the river but also in the 
lake and of a larger size than they had before seen. 
So great was the fertility of the soil that they were 
led to believe that cattle would not be in want of food 
during winter, or that wintry coldness would prevail, or 
the grass wither much." 

While the Northmen were passing the winter on 
the shore of the unnamed lake, it happened one even- 
ing that a Southern man, named Tyrker, did not 
return with those who had been out exploring the 
country. Those who went to search for the absent 
man met him returning to the quarters. They were 
surprised when he told them that he had found wine- 
wood and wine-berries {vzjzvid ok vinber). " Is this 
true, my teacher?" asked Leif. "It is really true," 
Tyrker replied, "for where I was brought up there was 
not wanting either wine-wood or wine-berries." They 
passed this night in sleep, but on the following morning 
Leif said to the men : " Two things are now to be 
done on alternate days, gathering wine-berries or hew- 
ing wine-wood and felling trees, {lesa vinber, edr 



30 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

hbggva vinvid ok fella morkina,) with which my ships 
should be loaded." Having loaded the ship and the 
spring approaching they prepared to depart. To desig- 
nate the productions of the region, Leif called it Vin- 
land (Wine-land). They then put to sea and had a 
favorable wind until they came in sight of Greenland." 
As a number of writers have assumed that the re- 
gion of Vinland, where Leif and his companions win- 
tered, was the country adjacent Mount Hope Bay, in 
Rhode Island, the following description of a part of the 
east coast of Greenland, given by Captain W. A. 
Graah, who was sent there, in 1828, by the Danish 
government to obtain information respecting the site 
of the eastern settlement [eysti^i bygd), will likely afford 
grounds for a more plausible conjecture that Vinland 
was a region in Greenland : " August 30 [1829].— 
The place we now were at was the Ekallumiut [be- 
tween the sixty-third and sixty-fourth parallel of north 
latitude], so often mentioned. The cove, the length 
of which is between one and two cable-lengths, has on 
both sides of it, but particularly on the eastern, fields 
of considerable extent, covered with dwarf-willows, 
juniper-berry, black crake-berry, and whortleberry 
heath, the first-named growing to the height of two 
feet, and the whole interspersed with a good many 
patches of a fine species of grass, which, however, was 
very much burnt by the heat of the sun, except in 
the immediate vicinity of the brooks and rivulets that, 
in great number, ran down the sides of the hills, and 
intersected the level land in every direction. At the 
the bottom of the cove stretches an extensive valley, 
through which runs a stream abounding in char, [a 
species of salmon,] and having its source in the glaciers, 

' Her Hefr Graenlendinga Thdtt. Antiq. Amer. pp. 26-40, Discovery 
of America. Beamish, pp. 59-70- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 31 

of which several gigantic arms reach down into the 
valley from the height in the background. On the 
banks of this brook the grass grew luxuriantly ; but 
it was far from being, at many places, of a height fit for 
mowing, so that even this spot, where grass was more 
abundant than anywhere else perhaps along the whole 
coast, does not seem calculated to furnish winter 
fodder for any considerable number of cattle. Various 
flowers, among which the sweet-smelling lychnis, 
everywhere adorned the fields. * * * At this 
really beautiful spot, the natives of the country round 
assemble for a few days during their brief summer, to 
feast upon the char that are to be got here in great 
plenty and of a great size, the black crake-berry and 
angelica, and to lay in a stock of them for winter use, 
and give themselves up to mirth and merry-making."^ 
It is further related, in the saga, concerning Vin- 
land, that " the days are more equal there than in 
Greenland or Iceland ; there the sun sets at eykt time 
[eyktar-stad, 3:30 p.m.), and rises at day-meal time 
{dagmdla-stad, breakfast-time), on the shortest day." ^ 

* Narrative of an expedition to the east coast of Greenland, sent by order 
of the king of Denmark, in search of the lost colonies, under the command of 
Captain W. A. Graah, of the Danish royal navy. Translated from the 
Danish by the late G. Go?don Macdougall, F.R.S.N.A, , for the Royal Geo- 
graphical Society of London. London, 1837. pp. 106, 107. 

^ ' ' Meira var thar jafndaegri enn d Graenlandi edr Islandi, sdl hafdi thar 
eyktarstad ok dagnidlastad tim skamdegi. " 

" Dag-mal, n. {vide dagr), prop. ' day-meal' one of the divisions of the day, 
usually about eight or nine o'clock, A.M. ; the Latin hora tertia is rendered by 
' er ver koUum dagmal, ' which we call d., Horn. [Homiliu-bok], 142 ; enn er 
ekki lidit af dagmalum, Hom. (St.) 10. Acts 11, 15 ; in Gliim. [Viga-Gliims 
Saga], 342, we are told that the young Glum was very lazy, and lay in bed till 
day-meal every morning, cp. also 343 ; Hrafn. [Hrafnkels Saga] 28 and O. H. 
L. [Olafs Saga Helga Legendaria] 18 — aeinum morni milli rismala ok dag- 
mala — where distinction is made between rismal (;-m«^ /z'w^) and dagmal, so 
as to make a separate dagsmark (q. v.) of each of them ; and again, a distinction 
is made between 'midday' and dagmal, Isl. [Islenzkar], 11, 334. The dagmal 
is thus midway between ' rising' and 'midday,' which accords well with the 



32 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

As there is no reliable information to indicate that 
the Northmen of the tenth century had any instru- 
ments by which they could accurately measure the 
changing spaces of day and night, or that their ob- 
servations of the sun gave them the knowledge of 
astronomical time, an attempt to elucidate the exact 
duration of the shortest day in Vinland from the vague 

present use. The word is synonymous with dagver darmal, breakfast-time , and 
denotes the hour when the ancient Icelanders used to take their chief meal, 
opposed to nattmal, night-meal ox supper-tune, Fms. [Fornmanna Sogur], viii, 
330 ; even the MSB. use dagmal and dagverdarmal indiscriminately ; cp. also 
Sturl. [Sturlunga Saga] in, 4 C ; Rb. [Rimbegla], 452 says that at full moon 
the ebb takes place ' at dagma-lum.' To put the dagmal at 7:30 A.M., as Pal 
Vidalin does, seems neither to accord with the present use nor the passage in 
Glum or the eccl. hora iertia, which was the nearest hour answering to the Icel. 
calculation of the day. In Fb. [Flateyjar bok] 1,539, it is said that the sun set 
at ' eykd ' {i. e. half-past three o'clock), but rose at ' dagmal,' which puts the 
dagmal at 8:30 A.M. Compds. dagmala-stadr, m. the place of d. in the hofizon, 
Fb. [Flateyjar bok]." 

" Eykt, eykd, f. three or half-past three o'clock, P.M.; many commentaries 
have been written upon this word, as by Pal Vidalin Skyr, Finn Johnson in H. 
E. [Historia Ecclesiastica Islandise] 1. 153 sqq. note 6, and in Horologium, 
etc. The time of eykd is clearly defined in K. Th. K. [Kristinnrettr Thorlaks 
ok Ketils], 92 as the time when the sun has past two parts of the ' utsudr ' (q. v.) 
and has one part left, that is to say, half past three o'clock, P.M.: it thus nearly 
coincides with the eccl. Lat. no7ia (three o'clock, p.m.) ; and both eykt and nona 
are therefore used indiscriminately in some passages. Sunset at the time of 
' eykd ' is opposed to sunrise at the time of ' dagmal,' q. v. In Norway ' ykt ' 
means a luncheon taken about half-past three o'clock. But the passage in 
Edda — that autumn ends and winter begins at sunset at the time of eykt — con- 
founded the commentators who believed it to refer to the conventional Icel. 
winter, which (in the old style) begins with the middle of October, and lasts six 
months. In the latitude of Reykholt — the residence of Snorri — the sun at this 
time sets about half-past four. Upon this statement the commentators have 
based their reasoning both in regard to dagmal and eykt, placing the eykt at 
half-past four.p.M., and dagmal at half-past seven, A.M., although this contra- 
dicts the definition of these terms in the law. The passage in Edda probably 
came from a foreign source, and refers not to the Icel. winter but to the as- 
tronomical winter, viz., the winter solstice or the shortest day ; for sunset at 
half-past three is suited not to Icel., but to the latitude of Scotland and the 
southern parts of Scandinavia. The word is also curious from its bearing 
upon the discovery of America by the ancients, vide Fb. [Flateyjar-bok] 1. c. 
This sense {half -past three) is now obsolete in Icel., but eykt is in freq. use in 
the sense of trihorium, a time of three hours ; whereas in the oldest sagas no 
"passage has been found bearing this sense,— the Bs. [Biskupa Sogur] i, 3S5, 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 33 

signification of the words eyktar-stad and ddgmdla-stad 
would consequently be futile and unsatisfactory. Nev- 
ertheless a number of scholars have attempted to de- 
termine the length of the shortest day at the place 
where the Northmen built their winter-quarters. Some 
have given the day a measurement of six hours, others 
seven, eight, and nine hours.^ These different lengths 

446, and Hem. [Hemings-thattr] 1. c, are of the 13th and 14th centuries. In 
Norway ykt is freq. used metaph. of all the four meal times in the day, morn- 
ing-ykt, midday-)'kt, af ternoon-ykt (or ykt proper), and even-ykt. In old MSS., 
Grag., K. Th. K. Hera. Heid. S. [Gragas, Kristinnrettr, Thorlaks ok Ketils, 
Hemings-thattr, Heidarviga Saga], this word is always spelt eykd or eykth, 
shewing the root to be ' auk ' with the fem. inflex. added ; it probably first 
meant' the ^/^^-meal, answering to Engl, hutch, and thence came to mean the 
time of day at which this meal was taken. The eccl. law dilates upon the word, 
as the Sabbath was to begin at ' hora nana ' ; hence the phrase, eykt helgr dagr. 
* * * 

" Eyktar-stadr. m. the place of the stifi at half -past three, P.M.; meira var, 
thar jafndaegri enn a Graenlandi edr Islandi, sol hafdi thar eyktar-stad ok dag- 
mala-stad um skamdegi, Fb. [Flateyjar bok] i, 539, — this passage refers to the 
discovery of America ; but in A, A. [Antiquitates Americans], 1. c, it is 
wrongly explained as denoting the shortest day nine hours long, instead of 
seven ; it follows that the latitude fixed by the editors of A. A. [Antiquitates 
Americanee] is too far to the south." 

"Dagr, m. * * * a day, * * * g^ the day is in Icel. divided ac- 
cording to the position of the sun above the horizon ; these fixed traditional 
marks are called dags-mork, day-marks, and are substitutes for the hours of 
modern times, viz. ris-mal or midr-morgun, dag-mal, ha-degi, mid-degi or mid- 
mundi, non, midr-aptan, natt-mal." 

" Stadr, m., gen. stadar, dat. stad, and older stadi, pi. stadir ; * * * 3, 
'stead,' place, abode." — An Icelandic-English dictionary based on the MS. col- 
lections of the late Richard Cleasby, enlarged and completed by Gudbrand Vig- 
fusson, M. A. Oxford, 1874. 

^ Thormod Torfason, or Torfasus, as his name is Latinized, in the addenda 
of his History of Ancient Vinland (Historia Vinlandias Antiquss), printed at 
Copenhagen, in 1705, explains the meaning of the words, saying that the sun in 
Vinland, on the shortest day, was six hours above the horizon, which would im- 
ply that this land lay between the fifty-eighth and sixty-first parallels of north 
latitude. " Torfasus confirms his interpretation by the authority of Amgrim 
Jonas, a learned Icelander who flourished at the end of the sixteenth and begin- 
ning of the seventeenth century, and who was deemed a profound astronomer. 
In his ' History of Greenland,' he thus renders the passage we are considering : 
' There is in Vinland no winter, no cold, no frost as in Iceland or Greenland ; 
inasmuch as the sun, on the very day of the winter solstice (they had no dials 
there), passes about six hours above the horizon.' Having cited this passage 



34 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

of the day involve the inference that Vinland was some- 
where between the forty-first and sixty-first parallels 
of north latitude. 

It is related in another saga or legend that Vinland 
was visited in the eleventh century by other Northmen.' 
Among the number were Thorfinn Karlsefne, Snorro 
Thorbrandson, Bjarni Grimolfson, and Thorhall Gam- 
lason. It is said that the three ships which departed 
from the western settlement, in the spring of 1007, had 
on board one hundred and forty men (40 manna ok 
hundrad). After sailing two days southward from 
Bjanneyjar they reached Helluland. " Thence they 
sailed two days, and turned from the south to the 
southeast," and came to Markland. 

When the Northmen departed from Markland, it is 
said in the saga that ** they then sailed far to the 

from Arngrim Jonas, Toifeus proceeds : ' This meaning I had long ago given 
this passage, first on the authority (if I rightly understood him) of Bryniulf 
Sveinson, the most learned of all the bishops of Skalkholt, to whom I was sent, 
while yet a youth, in the year 1662, with royal letters from my gracious 
master, King Frederick the Third, for the purpose of learning the genuine signi- 
fication of the more difficult ancient words and phrases ; and, then, from the 
necessary correspondence of the time of sunset with that of sunrise.'" — (The 
Discovery of America by the Northmen. By E. Everett. North American Re- 
view. January, 1S38. vol. xlvi. pp. 179-188. Vide Historia Vinlandise 
Antiquae, seu partis Americis Septentrionalis. Per Thormodum Torfasum. 
Havnise, 1705. Addenda. *■ 

Professor Charles C. Rafn, secretary of the Royal Society of Northern Anti- 
quaries, gives this rendition of the passage : "When the day is shortest the 
sun there has a place (is above the horizon) from half-past seven before noon 
till half-past four in the afternoon." — Antiq. Amer. p. 436. Vide Discov- 
ery of America. Beamish, pp.64, 65. According to Prof. Rafn, the North- 
men built their winter-quarters on the shore of Mount Hope bay, Rhode Island ; 
the day, nine hours long, indicating the latitude of 41° 24' 10". 

' The saga of Thorfinn Karlsefne and Snorro Thorbrandson {Saga Tlior- 
finns Karlsefnis ok Snorra Thorbrandssonar). This legend is written on vellum, 
and is one of the valuable Icelandic manuscripts called the Arna-Magncean col- 
lection, which is preserved in the library of the university of Copenhagen. 
The manuscripts were bequeathed to the university by Arne Magnussen, or, as 
his name is Latinized, Arnus Magnreus, an Icelandic scholar. The saga of 
' Thorfinn is supposed to have been compiled in the fourteenth century. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 35 

southward along the coast and came to a promontory. 
The land lay on the right and had a long sandy beach. 
They rowed to it and found on a tongue of land the 
keel of a ship. They called this point of land Kjalarnes 
(Keel cape), and the beach Furdustrandir (Long 
Strand), for it took a long time to sail by it. Then the 
coast became sinuous. They then steered the ship 
into an inlet. King Olaf Tryggvason had given Leif 
two Scotch people, a man named Haki and a woman 
named Hekja. They were swifter than animals. These 
persons were in the ship with Karlsefne. When they 
had sailed past Furdustrandir they put these Scots 
ashore and ordered them to run to the south of the 
country and explore it, and return within three days. 
* * * They were absent the designated time. 
When they returned, one brought a bunch of wine- 
berries {vinberja kbngul), the other an ear of wheat 
{hveitiax nysaict).^ When they were taken on board, 
the ship sailed farther. They came into a bay, where 
there was an island around which flowed rapid currents 
that suggested the name which they gave it, Straumey 
(Stream island). There were so many eider ducks on 
the island that one could hardly walk about without 

^ In the treatise of Ivar Bardsen, it is said that in Greenland "is found 
the best of wheat, (beste Uvede)." — Antiq. Amer. pp, 302-318. 

The wild wheat [elymus arenarius) growing on the sand flats of Iceland 
is thus described : " This plant, the melur oi the natives, is a kind of grass, 
with a spike or ear four or five inches long, and generally appears in a sandy 
soil. The sea-shore and tracts of volcanic ashes in the interior are equally 
favorable to its growth, though it is principally from the latter that the seeds 
used for bread are obtained ; and the natives regard it as a great gift wherewith 
the wise Creator has blessed those mournful wastes. The harvest is in August, 
when it become^ white in the ear, but as it is seldom fully ripe, it requires to 
be dried before grinding. It is cut with a sickle, made iip in bundles, and 
carried home on the backs of horses. It is then separated from the straw, 
and ground in hand-mills cut out of a block of lava, into fine meal of a grayish 
color." — Historical and descriptive account of Iceland, Greenland, and the 
Faroe islands, pp. 385, 3S6. 



36 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

stepping on their eggs. They called this place Straum 
fjord (Stream inlet). They took the cargo from the 
ship and made preparations to remain there. They 
had with them different kinds of cattle. They under- 
took nothing but the exploration of the land. Without 
having provided food beforehand they sustained them- 
selves there durino- the winter. In the summer the 
fishing was not good and they were in want of provi- 
sions. Thorhall the hunter disappeared. They had 
previously prayed to God to give them food, but they 
were not supplied as quickly as they thought their 
hunger demanded. They searched for Thorhall for 
three days. At last they found him lying on the top 
of a rock, looking up at the sky, gasping and mutter- 
ing. They asked him why he was there. He said that 
his presence there should not trouble them. They 
prevailed on him to return home with them. A whale 
was stranded there, and they found it and cut it up. 
No one knew what kind of a whale it was, and when 
the cook prepared a part ofit for them, they ate it and 
all were made sick. Then Thorhall said: 'The red- 
bearded [Thor, the god of thunder,] was more help- 
ful than your Christ ; this [the whale meat] I have re- 
ceived for my hymns which I sing of TJior, my pro- 
tector ; seldom has he deserted me.' When they 
heard this assertion, they cast the remainder of the 
whale into the sea and resiQ[ned themselves to the 
care of God. Then the weather favored them so that 
they were able to row out to fish, and thereafter they 
were not in want of food, for wild game was caught 
on land and fish in the sea, and eggs were collected on 
the island. * * * 

" It is said that Thorhall resolved to go northward 
along Furdustrandir to explore Vinland, but Karlsefne 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 37 

determined to sail southward along the coast. Thorhall 
fitted out his vessel under the island, having not more 
than nine men to join him, for all the others went with 
Karlsefne. Now when Thorhall carried water to his 
ship, he sang these verses : 

' People told me when I came 
Hither, all would be so fine ; 
The good Vinland, known to fame, 
Rich in fruits and choicest wine ; 
Now the water-pail they send ; 
To the fountain I must bend, 
Nor from out this land divine 
Have I quaffed one drop of wine.' 

" When they were about to depart and had hoisted 
sail, Thorhall again sang : 

' Let our trusty band 
Haste to Fatherland ; 
Let our vessel brave 
Plough the angry wave, 
While those few who love 
Vinland, here may rove, 
Or, with idle toil, 
Fetid whales may boil. 
Here on Furdustrand, 
Far from Fatherland.' * * * 

" It is now to be told of Karlsefne that he with 
Snorro and Bjarni and their people sailed southward 
along the coast. They sailed a long time until they 
came to a river, which ran out from the land and 
through a lake into the sea. The river was quite shal- 
low, and no ship could enter it without high water. 
Karlsefne sailed with his people into its mouth and 
called the place Hop {ok kolludu i Hbpi).^ They 
found fields of wild wheat {sjdlfsana hveitiakra) where 
the ground was low, and wine-wood where it was 
higher. * * * There was a great number of all kinds 

' From hdpa to recede. Hdp, a recess, haven, bay, inlet. 
Certain writers assume this place Hop to be the country around Mount 
Hope bay, in Rhode Island. 



38 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

of wild animals in the woods. They remained at this 
place a half-month and enjoyed themselves, but did not 
find any thing novel. They had their cattle with them. 
Early one morning, when they were viewing the 
country, they saw a great number of skin boats on the 
sea. '^ * * The people in them rowed nearer 
and with curiosity gazed at them. * * * These 
people were swart [svartir^ and ugly, and had coarse 
hair, large eyes, and broad cheeks. They remained a 
short time and watched Karlsefne's people. They then 
rowed away to the southward beyond the cape. 

" Karlsefne and his people had erected their dwell- 
ings above the lake. Some of the houses were near 
the water and others were farther away. They re- 
mained here during the winter.^ There was no snow, 
and their cattle subsisted on the grass." 

It is further related that when spring drew near the 
natives again visited the Northmen and trafficked with 
them. " The people preferred red cloth, and for this 
they gave skins and all kinds of furs. They also wanted 
to purchase swords and spears, but Karlsefne and 
Snorro would not sell them any weapons. For a 
whole skin the Skraelings {Skraeliiigar^ took a piece 
of red cloth a span long, and bound it;^ around their 
heads.^ In this way they bartered for a time. Then 
the cloth began to diminish, and Karlsefne and his men 
cut it into small strips not wider than one's finger, and 
still the Skraelings gave as much for these as they 
had for the larger pieces, and often more. " It hap- 
pened that a bull, which Karlsefne had with him, ran 
out from the wood and bellowed loudly. This frightened 
the Skraelings so much that they rushed to their boats 
and rowed away to the southward around the coast." 

'This statement does not agree with the one preceding it, — that " they re- 
mained at this place a half-month." 

" Skiadino- ir, m. pi l-",-nuini,iux. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 39 

Three weeks afterward a large number of Skrael- 
ines returned in their boats utterinsf loud cries. " Karl- 
sefne's men took a red shield and held it toward 
them. The Skraelings leaped from their boats and 
attacked them. Many missiles fell among them, for 
the Skraelings used slings {valslb7tgur\ Karlsefne's 
men saw that they had raised on a pole something 
resembling an air-filled bag of a blue color. They 
hurled this at Karlsefne's party, and when it fell to 
the ground it exploded with a loud noise. This fright- 
ened Karlsefne and his men so much that they ran 
and fell back to the river, for it seemed to them that the 
Skraelings were inclosing them on all sides. They did 
not stop until they reached a rocky place where they 
stoutly resisted their assailants. Freydis [the wife of 
Thorvard] came out, and seeing Karlsefne's people re- 
treating, cried out : ' Why do you run, stout men as 
you are, before these miserable wretches, whom I 
thought you could knock down as you do cattle ! If I 
had weapons I know that I could fight better than 
you ! ' They did not heed her words. Freydis then 
attempted to keep up with them but could not. She 
followed them to the woods. The Skraelings pursued 
her. She found a dead man in the way. It was Thor- 
brand Snorrason. A flat stone was sticking in his 
head. His sword was by his side. She grasped it 
and prepared to defend herself. The Skraelings came 
toward her. She exposed her bosom and struck 
her breast with the sword. The Skraehnes were 
frightened and ran to their boats and rowed away. 
Karlsefne and his men then came and praised her 
courage. Karlsefne lost two men but the Skraelings 
many more. * * * 

" Karlsefne and his men now perceived that not- 



40 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

withstanding" the country was fruitful they would be 
exposed to many dangerous incursions of its inhabi- 
tants if they should remain in it. They therefore de- 
termined to depart and return to their own land. They 
sailed northward along the coast and found five 
Skraelings clothed in skins sleeping on the sea-shore. 
They had with them vessels containing marrow mixed 
with blood. Karlsefne's men believed that they had 
been banished from the country and they killed them. 
After that they came to a cape and there were many 
wild animals on it. * * =!= Then they reached 
Straum fjord, where there was an abundance of every 
thing which they desired. It is said by some that 
Bjarni and Gudrid remained behind with one hundred 
men, and did not go farther, but that Karlsefne and 
Snorro went southward and forty men with them, and 
that they were not longer in Hop than two months, 
and that they returned from there the same summer. 

* * * They inspected the mountains at Hop, which 
they thought belonged to a range which extended in 
two directions to the same distance from Straum 
fjord. The third winter they were in Straum fjord. 

* * * Snorro, the son of Karlsefne, was born here 
the first autumn, and he was three years old when 
they went away from Vinland. When they sailed from 
Vinland they had a south wind and came to Mark- 
land."^ 

The Northmen it seems continued their visits to 
Vinland as late as the fourteenth century. In the geo- 
graphical treatise of Adam of Bremen, written in 1073, 
the author says that it was told him by Sveyn Estrith- 
son, King of Denmark, that Vinland was an island : 
" Moreover he said that an island had been discov- 

Antiq. Amer. pp. 136-163. Discovery of America. Beamish, pp. 87-103. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 41 

ered by many in that ocean, which is called Vinland, 
because vines grow spontaneously there, producing ex- 
cellent wine. For that fruits abound there not havino- 
been sown, we are assured not by any vague rumor 
but by the trustworthy report of the Danes."' 

The island of Vinland is described in an old geo- 
graphical document as lying on the opposite side of a 
channel, between it and Greenland : " Now is to be 
told what lies opposite Greenland, out from the bay 
already mentioned. Furdustrandir is the name of a 
land. There are such hard frosts there that it is not 
habitable as far as is known. South of it is Helluland, 
which is called Skraeling's land. From there it is not 
far to Vinland the good, which some think goes out 
from Africa. Between Vinland and Greenland is 
Ginnungagap which flows from the sea called Mare 
Oceanum that encompasses the whole earth." ^ On a 
map made by Sigurd Stephanius, an Icelander, in iS/o, 
Helluland, Markland, Skraeling's land, and the prom- 
ontory of Vinland are represented as parts of the 
country now called Greenland.^ 

No geographical information contained in the sagas 
of Iceland and Greenland verifies the statement that 
the Northmen discovered America and explored the 
coast of a part of the present territory of the United 

' " Prceterea unam adhuc insulam recitavit a multis in eo repertam oceano, 
qua dicitur Winland, eo quod ibi viies sponte nascantur, vinuvt optimum 
ferentes. Nam et fruges ibi non seminatas habtmdare, non fabulosa opinione, 
sed certa comperimus relatione Danosum." — M. Adamigesta Hammenburgensis 
ecclesise pontiflcum. Edente M. Lappenburg. I. U. D. Reipublicse Ham- 
burgensis tabulario. Monumenta Germanise historica. By George Henry 
Pertz. Hannoveras, 1846. 

^ This fragment of a geographical or historical work is supposed to have 
been written before the time of Columbus. — Gripla C. Antiq. Amer. pp. 280, 
281, 293, 296. Discovery of America. Beamish, pp. 114, 115. 

' The map marked Tab. ii, is contained in the historical work entitled : 
Gronlandia Antiqva, seu veteris Gronlandise Descriptio. * * * Authore 
Thormodo Torfaeo. Havniae, 1715. p. 21. 



42 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

States. What tradition relates respecting the North- 
men finding" wine-berries in Vinland does not make it 
indubitably evident that they were the fruit now called 
grapes.' The wine-wood that was cut and carried on 
board of Leif's ship indicates that there was no large 
timber in Vinland, and that the trees that were felled 
were of a stunted growth as those that are now found 
on the coast of Greenland. The statements respecting 
the great number of eider ducks, the natives who were 
frightened by the bellowing of a bull, the skin-boats 
used by them, the want of food by the Northmen, 
their eating the flesh of a stranded whale to escape 
starvation, and the sarcastic laneuag'e of the sone sune 
by Thorhall concerning Vinland being a land of wine, 
clearly establish the fact that this country or region 
was very near the Arctic circle. Further, all the early 
maps of Greenland show Helluland, Markland, and 
Vinland to be regions of that country. 

The questionable interpretation of the characters 
on the rock, lying in the water, on the east side of the 
Taunton River, opposite Dighton, Massachusetts, by a 
number of foreign antiquaries, is a notable exemplifi- 
cation of the fictitious nature of the so-called evidence 
that the Northmen discovered America ^and explored 
a part of the eastern coast of the present territory of the 
United States.'' The remarkable statement that the 

^ If they were grapes, it does not follow that they were found on the eastern 
coast of the present territory of the United States. The French navigator, 
Jacques Cartier, in September, 1535, found "vines laden as full of grapes as 
could be all along the riuer [St. Lawrence], which rather seemed to haue bin 
planted by mans hand than otherwise." — The third and last volume of the 
voyages, navigations, trafifiques, and discoueries of the English nation. By 
Richard Hakluyt. London, 1600. p. 218. 

'^The rock writing, as interpreted by a» Indian, is an account of a battle 
fought by the people of two tribes, and was engraved by some or one of the 
members of the victorious party. — Archives of aboriginal knowledge. By Henry 
R. Schoolcraft, i860, vol. i. pp. 112-124 ; vol. iv. pp. 119. Antiq. Amer. 
PP- 373-403- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 43 

round, stone-tower, at Newport, Rhode Island, men- 
tioned by Governor Benedict Arnold In his will, made 
in 1677, as " my stone-built windmill," was erected by 
the Northmen, is also an instance of the infatuation of 
the learned men who believed it to be a Norse monu- 
ment.' 

The supposition that the Welsh adventurer, Madoc 
Guyneth, planted a colony on the Atlantic coast of 
North America, in the twelfth century, rests on some 
traditionary information in a history of Wales, published 
in 1584.^ In this rare work it is related that the sons 
of Owen Guyneth, King of North Wales, on the death 
of their father, had many contentions respecting the 
heirship to his estates and who should rule after him. 
This strife mortified Madoc. In order to separate 
himself from his quarrelling brothers he fitted out a 
number of ships and sailed west, " leaving the coast of 
Ireland so far north, that he came to an unknown land, 
where he saw many strange things." He then re- 
turned home and gave an account of the attractive 
and fertile countries "he had seen without inhabitants." 
He induced a number of men and women, who desired 
to live peaceably, to emigrate to the western land. 
The second voyage was safely made to the colony in 
the "fair and large country." He returned again to 

^ Benedict Arnold, the first governor of Rhode Island, living at Newport, 
in his will, dated December 20, 1677, directed that his body should be buried 
at a certain spot, " being and lying in my land, in or near the line or path from 
my dwelling-house leading to my stone-built windmill, in the town of Newport." 
Another mill of similar construction is near Leamington, in the parish of Ches- 
terton, in Warwickshire, England, where Benedict Arnold lived when a boy. 
This mill was built according to a plan first introduced into England by Inigo 
Jones. — History of New England, by John Gorham Palfrey. Boston, 1859. 
vol. i. Note. pp. 57-59. 

* History of Wales, written by Caradoc of Llancarvan, Glamorganshire, 
in the British Language, translated into English by Humphry Llwyd, and pub- 
lished by Dr. David Powel in the year 1584. 



44 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Wales for more colonists. Ten ships filled with emi- 
grants shortly afterward set sail for the new settlement. 
It is further related that many fictions were current 
thereafter respecting- Madoc's discoveries in the un- 
named country.' Meredith ap Rhees, a Welsh bard, 
who died in 1477, has rehearsed in a number of verses 
a part of the unsatisfactory tradition concerning Ma- 
doc's voyage.'' As said by Baron von Humboldt : 
" The deepest obscurity still shrouds every thing con- 
nected with the voyage of the Gaelic chief, Madoc."^ 

The story of a Frisland fisherman, in the history of 
the discoveries of the Zeni brothers, published in i558, 
is thought by some writers to be a true narrative of 
this man's adventures on a part of the continent of 
America, in the fourteenth century."* It is related that 
Nicolo Zeno, a wealthy man, had a ship built, equipped, 

' " The most ancient Discouery of the West Indies by Madoc, the sonne of 
Owen Guynetli Prince of North-wales, in tlie yeere 1170 : taken out of the his- 
tory of Wales, lately published by M. Dauid Powel Doctor of Diuinity. * * * 
Madoc another of Owen Guyneth his sonnes left the land in contention be- 
twixt his brethren, & prepared certaine ships with men and munition, and sought 
aduentures by Seas, sailing West, and leauing the coast of Ireland so farre 
North, that he came vnto a land vnknowen, where he saw many strange 
things, * * * 

" Of the voyage and returne of this Madoc there are many fables fained, 
as the common people doe vse in distance of place and length of time rather to 
augment then to diminish : but sure it is there he was. And after he had re- 
turned home, and declared the pleasant and fruitful! countreys that he had 
scene without inhabitants, and vpon the contrary part, for what barren & wild 
ground his brethren and nephewes did murther one another, he prepared a 
number of ships, and got with him such men and women as were desirous to 
Hue in quietnesse : and taking leaue of his friends, tooke his journey thither- 
ward againe. * * * This Madoc arriving in that Western country, vnto his 
people there, and returning back for more of his owne nation, acquaintance, & 
friends to inhabit that faire & large countrey, went thither again with ten sailes, 
as I find noted by Gutyn Owen." — Hakluyt. vol. iii. p. i. 

' Hakluyt. vol. iii. p. i. 

^ Kosmos : Entwurf einer physischen Weltbeschreibung. Alexander von 
Humboldt. 1 845-1 858. Trans, by E. C. Otte. Bohn's ed. vol. ii. pp. 
608, 609. 

* The history of the voyages of the Zeni brothers was first published with 
another work entitled : Dei Commentarij del Viaggio in Persia. Venezia, 1558. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 45 

and manned at his own expense, and sailed in it from 
Venice, " with the intention of visiting England and 
Flanders." But in a storm his vessel was cast upon an 
island called Frisland. ' "The crew were saved to- 
gether with most of the ship's cargo. This occurred 
in the year 1380. The inhabitants of the island, having 
collected in considerable numbers, attacked the cheva- 
lier and his men, who, being exhausted by the hard- 
ships they had endured, and not knowing in what part 
of the world they had been thrown, were unable to 
resist them, much less to defend themselves with the 
spirit that the emergency demanded. They would 
have been treated, without doubt, in a most barbarous 
manner, had it not fortunately happened that a power- 
ful chieftain, with an armed force, was in their neigh- 
borhood, who, learning that a large ship had been cast 
upon the island, and hearing the noise and shouts of 
the inhabitants as they rushed upon our poor mariners, 
hastened forward, and putting the islanders to flight, 
inquired of the Venetians, in Latin, of what nation they 
were, and whence they had come. When informed 
that they were from Italy, and natives of that country, 
he was filled with joy and amazement. * * * Hq 
was a great lord and possessed certain islands called 
Porland, about a half-day's sail from Frisland, the 
richest and most populous of all the islands of those 
parts. This chieftain's name was Zichmni." 

Nicolo Zeno then entered the service of this dis- 
tinguished man. Some time afterward he wrote to his 
brother Antonio, and related these incidents. The 
latter visited Frisland, where he lived fourteen years. 
On the death of Nicolo, which occurred four years 

' The name is evidently a designation for Iceland. Frislanda, the cold or 
frozen land ; Anglo-Saxon, frysan ; Icelandic, ffiosa; Swedish, frysa; Danish, 
fryse ; and land, land. 



46 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

after Antonio's arrival, he was appointed to take com- 
mand of Zichmni's fleet. From letters written by 
Antonio to his brother Carlo, the remarkable particu- 
lars of the followinor- narrative are said to have been 
compiled : 

" Six and twenty years ago four fishing-boats put 
out to sea from Frisland, and being overtaken by a 
storm were drifted about for many days in a helpless 
condition. When, at last, the tempest abated, they 
descried an island called Estotiland,' lying more than 
a thousand miles westward from Frisland. One of 
the boats was cast upon its coast, and the six men 
in it were taken by the inhabitants and conducted to a 
fair and populous city, where the king sent for many 
interpreters, but none could be found who understood 
the language of the fishermen except one man who 
spoke Latin, and who likewise had been cast by acci- 
dent upon the same island. Ordered by the king, he 
asked them who they were, and where they came from, 
and when he reported their answer, the king desired 
that they should remain in that country. Accordingly, 
as they could not do otherwise, they obeyed his order, 
and remained five years on the island, and learned the 
language. One of them in particular visited different 
parts of the island, and reports that it is a very rich 
country, abounding in all good things. It is a little 
smaller than Iceland but more fertile. In the middle 
of it is a very high mountain, in which rise four rivers 
which water the whole country. 

" The inhabitants are a very intelligent people and 
possess all the arts as we do ; and it is believed that 
in time past they have had intercourse with our people, 
for he said that he saw Latin books in the kind's 

Estotiland seems to be an anomalous form of the name Scotland, from 
Anglo-Saxon, scot ; Spanish and Portuguese, escote ; Italian, scotto. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 47 

library, which they at the present time do not under- 
stand. They have their own language and letters. 
They have all kinds of metals, especially gold. Their 
foreign intercourse is with Greenland, where they 
import furs, brimstone, and pitch. He says that toward 
the south there Is a great and populous country, very 
rich in gold. They sow corn and make beer, which is 
a kind of drink which northern people take as we do 
wine. They have woods of vast extent. They con- 
struct their buildings with walls, and there are many 
towns and villages. They make small boats and sail 
them, but they have not the loadstone, nor do they 
know the north by the compass. For this reason these 
fishermen were held in great esteem, insomuch that 
the king sent them with twelve boats to the southward 
to a country which they call Drogio ; but in their 
voyage they had such stormy weather that they were 
in fear for themselves. Although they escaped a mis- 
erable death they afterward met a more painful one, 
for they were taken into the country and the greater 
number of them were eaten by the savages, who are 
cannibals and consider human flesh very savory meat. 
But as this fisherman and his remaining companions 
were able to show them the way to catch fish with 
nets, their lives were spared. Every day he would go 
fishing in the sea and in the fresh waters, and take a 
great number of fish, which he gave to the chiefs, and 
thereby ingratiated himself so much into their favor 
that he was greatly liked and held in high esteem 
by all. 

" As this man's fame spread among the different 
tribes, there was a neighboring chief who was very 
anxious to have him with him and to see how he prac- 
tised his wonderful art of catchinor fish. With this 

o 



48 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

object in view he made war on the other chief with 
whom the fisherman was, and being more powerful 
and a better warrior, he, at last, overcame him, and so 
the fisherman was sent to him with the rest of his 
companions. During the space of thirteen years that 
he dwelt in those parts, he says, he was s^nt in this 
manner to more than five-and-twenty chiefs, for they 
were continually fighting among themselves, this chief 
with that one, and solely for the purpose of having the 
fisherman to dwell with them, so that wandering up 
and down the country without any fixed abode, he be- 
came acquainted with almost all those regions. He 
says that it is a very great country, and, as it were, a 
new world. The people are very rude and unculti- 
vated, for they all go naked, and suffer bitterly from 
the cold, nor have they the sense to clothe themselves 
with skins of the animals which they take in hunting. 
They have no kind of metal. They live by hunting, 
and carry lances of wood, sharpened at the point. 
They have bows, the strings of which are made of 
beasts' skins. They are very fierce, and have deadly 
wars with one another, and eat the flesh of their cap- 
tives. They have chiefs and certain laws, but differing 
in different tribes. The farther you go southwestward, 
however, the more refinement you meet with, because 
the climate is more temperate, but there they have 
cities and temples dedicated to their idols, in which 
they sacrifice men and afterward eat them. In those 
parts they have some knowledge and use of gold and 
silver. 

" This fisherman after dwelling so many years in 
those parts resolved to return home if possible to his 
own country, but his companions, despairing of ever 
seeing it again, gave him Godspeed, and remained 
where they were. Accordingly he bade them farewell 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 49 

and made his escape through the woods in the direc- 
tion of Drogio, where he was welcomed and kindly 
received by the chief of the place, who knew him and 
was a great enemy of the neighboring chief. Thus 
passing from one chief to another, being the same with 
whom he had been before, he, at last, reached, after 
a long time and many hardships, Drogio, where he 
remained three years. Here by good fortune he 
learned from the natives that some boats had ap- 
peared off the coast, and hopeful of being able to carry 
out his intention, he went to the beach, and found to 
his great delight that the men on board the boats had 
come from Estotiland. He immediately begged them 
to take him back with them, which they willingly con- 
sented to do. He understood the language of the 
country which none of them could speak, and they 
employed him as an interpreter. Afterward he traded 
in company with them to such good purpose that he 
became very rich, and having fitted out a vessel of his 
own he returned to Frisland."' 

When Zichmni heard the story of the returned 
fisherman, it is said that he prepared a fleet to go to 
the countries described by him. The fisherman dying 
about the time that the vessels were ready to sail, 
some of the seamen who had come from Estotiland in 
his ship were taken to pilot them. An island called 
Icaria was discovered, but no exploration of it could 
be made on account of the hostility of Its inhabitants. 
The fleet afterward proceeded to the coast of Green- 
land, from which it sailed to Frisland. 

^ Dello Scoprimento dell 'Isole Frislanda, Eslanda, Engronelanda, Estoti- 
landa, & Icaria, fatto per due fratelli Zeni, M. Nicolo il Caualiere, & M. An- 
tonio, Libro Vno, col disegno di dette Isole. 

The Voyages of the Venetian Brothers, Nicolo and Antonio Zeno to the 
Northern Seas. By Richard Henry Major. London, 1873. Hakluyt Soc. 
pub. pp. 1-24. 



50 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

The compiler of the history of the discoveries of 
the Zeni brothers says : " This discovery [made by 
the Frisland fisherman] Messere Antonio, in a letter to 
his brother Messere Carlo, related, =5= * * saying 
that we have changed some old words and the anti- 
quated style, but have left the substance entire. * * 
* Of these northern places, I [the compiler] have 
thought it good to draw a copy of the sailing chart, 
which I find I have among our family heirlooms, and, 
although it is rotten with age, I have succeeded with 
it tolerably well ; and to those who take pleasure in 
such things, it will serve to throw light on the compre- 
hension of that which without it could not be under- 
stood so easily." 

Inasmuch as it is difficult to disprove that the 
names Frislanda, Engronelanda, and Estotilanda were 
not early designations for Iceland, Greenland, and Scot- 
land, the supposition that the unnamed Frisland fisher- 
man passed thirteen years of his life on the continent 
of America solely rests upon the particulars of the 
story of his famous adventures as a maker of fishing- 
nets. 



CHAPTER II. 

1 295-1487. 

In the opulent and insular city of Venice, there 
arrived, a few years before the close of the thirteenth 
century, three strangely clad sun-embrowned men. If 
any notice had been taken of them when they disem- 
barked from the Mediterranean galley in which they 
had come from Negropont, this attention had, it is 
likely, been bestowed upon their odd garb and imper- 
fect pronunciation of the Italian words which they used 
while obtaining a boatman to convey them to that part 
of the city known as the confine of S. Giovanni 
Crisostomo. 

The unique story respecting the return of these 
famous travellers to Venice will always be deemed 
the prologue that introduces the notable acts of the 
explorers of the Atlantic coast territory of America 
in the fifteenth century. It is therefore properly enti- 
tled to a conspicuous place on the first pages of the 
history of the discovery of America. Five centuries 
ago it charmed the Venetians with its vivid colorings, 
and gave to the Orient an entrancing vision that made 
the name of Cathay for a time a synonym for an earthly 
paradise. It pictured to them a far-off El Dorado, 
abounding with gold, gems, and spicery, a country 
naturally delightful and artificially magnificent. Amer- 
ica lay in some of the navigable ways which were 
sought by acquisitive Europeans to go to it, and thus 

51 



52 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the return of Nicole, Maffeo, and Marco Polo, in 1295, 
to Venice, after an absence of twenty-four years, is 
inseparably linked to the great chain of events con- 
necting it with the discovery of the new continent of 
the western hemisphere.' Ramusio, the distinguished 
Italian collector of information relating to voyages and 
travels, has preserved the account of the strange 
revelations made by the three travellers on their 
return from Cathay.^ 

" When they arrived here the same fate befell them 
which happened to Ulysses, who, when he returned 
after his twenty years' wanderings to his native Ithaca, 
was recognized by none of his people. In like manner 
these three gentlemen, who had been absent so many 
years from their native city, were not identified by any 
of their kinsfolk, who believed that they had been dead 
for many years, as had been reported. They were 
quite changed in appearance by the prolongation and 
hardships of their journeys and by the trouble and 
anxieties they had experienced ; and they had a certain 
indescribable smack of the Tartar both in demeanor 
and accent, having indeed almost forgotten their Ve- 
netian tongue. Their clothes, too, were coarse and 
shabby, and of a Tartar cut. They proceeded on their 
arrival to their house, in this city, in the confine of S. 

' In 1260, the two brothers, Nicolo and Maffeo Polo, departed from Con- 
stantinople, on a trading expedition to the Euxine Sea ; thence they travelled 
through the western dominions of the Grand Khan of the Tartars. In 1269 
they returned home with letters from this sovereign to Pope Clement IV. On 
their arrival in Venice, Nicolo found that his wife had died in giving birth to 
his son, Marco, then a lad of fifteen years. In 1271 the brothers (Maffeo 
being a bachelor) again left home for the Orient, taking Marco with them. 
In 1295 the three returned to Venice after an absence of twenty-four years. 

^ Giovanni Battista Ramusio was born at Tevisa in 1485. For a decade of 
years he was secretary to the Venetian Council of Ten. His valuable collection 
of voyages and travels, entitled " Raccolta di Navigationi e Viaggi," comprises 
three volumes. Volume I. was published in 1554, volume II. in 1559, and 
volume III. in 1556. Ramusio died in 1557. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 53 

Giovanni Crisostomo, where you may see it to this 
day. The house, which in those days was a lofty and 
handsome palace, is now known by the name of the 
Court of the Millions, for a reason which I will tell you 
presently. 

" When they reached the palace, they found it oc- 
cupied by some of their relatives, and they had the 
utmost difficulty in making the latter understand who 
they were. For these good people seeing them to be 
in appearance so unlike what they were formerly, and 
in dress so shabby, flatly refused to believe that they 
were those very gentlemen of the Polo family whom 
they thought had been dead many years. So these 
three gentlemen, — this is a story I have often heard 
when I was a boy from the illustrious Messere Gasparo 
Malpiero, a gentleman of very great age and a sena- 
tor of eminent virtue and integrity, whose house was 
on the canal of Santa Marianna, at the corner, over the 
mouth of the brook of S. Giovanni Crisostomo, and 
just midway among the buildings of the aforesaid Court 
of the Millions, and he said he had heard the story from 
his own father and grandfather, and from other old 
men among the neighbors, — the three gentlemen, I say, 
devised a scheme by which they should obtain at once 
from their kinsfolk the recognition they desired, and 
secure the honorable notice of the whole city ; and this 
was it : 

" They invited a number of their kindred to an 
entertainment, which they purposely prepared with 
great state and splendor in their house. When the 
hour arrived for sitting down to table all three came 
from their chambers clothed in crimson satin, fashioned 
in long robes reaching to the ground, such as people in 
those days wore within doors. And when water for 



54 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the hands had been served, and the guests were seated, 
they took off these robes and put on others of crimson 
damask, while the first suits were by their orders cut 
and divided among the servants. Then after partaking 
of some of the dishes they went out again and came 
back in robes of crimson velvet, and when they had 
again taken their seats, the second suits were divided 
as the first. When dinner was over they did the like 
with the robes of velvet, after they had put on dresses 
of the ordinary fashion worn by their guests. These 
proceedings caused much wonder and amazement 
amone their relatives. But when the cloth had been 
drawn, and all the servants had been ordered to retire 
from the dining-hall, Messere Marco, the youngest of 
the three, rose from the table, and going into another 
chamber brought forth the three shabby dresses of 
coarse stuff which they had worn when they first ar- 
rived. Straightway they took sharp knives and began 
to rip open some of the seams and welts, and to take 
out of them many gems of the greatest value, such as 
rubies, sapphires, carbuncles, diamonds, and emeralds, 
all of which had been stitched up in these dresses in 
a manner so artful that nobody could have suspected 
the fact. For when they took leave of the Grand Khan 
they changed all the wealth which he had bestowed 
upon them for these rubies, emeralds, and other gems, 
being well aware of the impossibility of carrying with 
them so great an amount of gold on a journey so long 
and so difficult. 

" Now the exhibition of this large number of gems 
and precious stones, all scattered over the table, threw 
the guests into fresh amazement, insomuch that they 
seemed quite bewildered and speechless. They now 
saw that in spite of all their former doubts these were 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 55 

really the honored and worthy gentlemen of the Polo 
family as they had claimed to be, and they therefore 
paid them the greatest honor and reverence. And 
when the story became current in Venice, straightway 
the whole city, gentle and simple, flocked to the house 
to embrace them, and to make much of them, with 
every conceivable demonstration of affection and re- 
spect. 

" On Messere Maffeo, who was the eldest, the 
Venetians conferred the honors of an office which was 
of great dignity in those days ; while the young men 
came daily to visit and converse with the ever-polite 
and gracious Messere Marco, and to ask him questions 
about Cathay' and the Grand Khan, all of which he 
answered with such kindly courtesy that every man felt 
himself in a manner his debtor. And as it happened 
that in the story, which he was constantly called on to 
repeat, of the magnificence of the Grand Khan, he 
would speak of his revenues as amounting to ten or 
fifteen millions of gold ; and in like manner, when 
recounting- other instances of ereat wealth in those 
parts, he would always make use of the term millions, 
so they gave him the nickname of Messere Marco 
Millioni, an appellation which I have seen in the public 
records of this republic where mention is made of him. 
The court of his house, in the confine of S. Giovanni 
Crisostomo, has always from that time been known as 
the Corte del Millioni." ^ 

' China. " For about three centuries," says Yule, " the Northern provinces 
of China had been detached from native rule, and subject to foreign dynasties ; 
first to the Khitau, a people from the basin of the Sungari River, and supposed 
(but doubtfully) to have bo^n akin to the Tunguses, whose rule subsisted for 200 
years, and originated the name Khitai, Khata, or Cathay, by which for nearly 
1000 years China has been known to the nations of Inner Asia, and to those 
whose acquaintance with it was got by that channel." — The book of Ser Marco 
Polo. By Henry Yule. London, 1875. Introd. p. 11. 

* Ramusio ; Raccolta di navigationi e viaggi. vol. ii. Prefatione. 



56 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

These conversational descriptions respecting' the 
remote dominions of the Grand Khan, with which 
Marco Polo often interested the imaginative Venetians, 
were to have a much wider field of influence in 
another form, — one which was a most potent element 
among the leading agencies which opened to the peo- 
ple of Western Europe great pathways of discovery 
and of commerce around the earth. In order to per- 
ceive how these descriptions of Cathay led to the ex- 
ploration of the Atlantic Ocean and the discovery of the 
continent of America, the fortunes of Marco Polo must 
be followed farther. It appears that shortly after his 
return to Venice he was placed in command of a fleet, 
which subsequently was captured by the Genoese in a 
naval engagement. While confined in Genoa as a 
prisoner of war, his remarkable adventures as an 
explorer of remote eastern countries became known, 
and he was often visited and questioned by inquisitive 
people. Wearied by the frequent repetition of the story 
of his wanderings in Cathay, he at last applied himself 
to writing an account of his extensive journeys by the 
aid of such notes and memoranda as he had taken while 
in the East. Assisted by a Genoese gentleman, he 
completed his curious and instructive narrative, which 
was soon copied, translated into different languages, 
and distributed among the people of Europe.' 

' Concerning Marco Polo, Humboldt remarks: " Jacquet, who was un- 
happily too early removed by a premature death from the investigation of 
Asiatic languages, and who, like Klaproth and myself, was long occupied 
with the work of the great Venetian traveller, wrote to me, as follows, shortly 
before his decease : ' I am as much struck as yourself by the composition of the 
Milione. It is undoubtedly founded on the direct and personal observation of 
the traveller, but he probably also made use of documents either officially or 
privately communicated to him. Many things appear to have been borrowed 
from Chinese and Mongolian works, although it is difficult to determine their 
precise influence on the composition of the Milione ; owing to the successive 
translations from which Polo took his extracts. Whilst our modern travellers 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 57 

As justly claimed by Yule, Marco Polo was the 
first traveller " to trace a route across the longitude 
of Asia, naming and describing kingdom after king- 
dom which he had seen with his own eyes ; the des- 
erts of Persia, the flowering plateaux and wild gorges 
of Badakhshan, the jade-bearing rivers of Khotan, the 
Mongolian steppes, * * * the new and brilliant 
court that had been established at Cambaluc ; the first 
traveller to reveal China in all its wealth and vastness, 
its mighty rivers, its huge cities, its rich manufactures, 
its swarming population, the inconceivably vast fleets 
that quickened its seas and its inland waters ; to tell us 
of the nations on its borders with all their eccentricities 
of manners and worship ; of Tibet with its sordid 
devotees ; of Burma, with its golden pagodas and their 
tinkling crowns ; of Laos, of Siam, of Cochin China, 
of Japan, the Eastern Thule, with its rosy pearls and 
golden-roofed palaces ; the first to speak of that mu- 
seum of beauty and wonder, still so imperfectly ran- 
sacked, the Indian archipelago, source of aromatics 
then so highly prized and whose origin was so dark ; 
of Java, the pearl of islands ; of Sumatra with its many 
kings, its strange costly products, and its cannibal 
races ; of the naked savages of Nicobar and Andaman ; 
of Ceylon, the isle of gems, with its sacred mountain 
and its tomb of Adam ; of India the great, not as a 
dreamland of Alexandrian fables but as a country seen 
and partially explored, with its virtuous Brahmans, 

are only too well pleased to occupy their readers with their personal adventures, 
Marco Polo takes pains to blend his own observations with the official data com- 
municated to him, of which, as Governor of the city of Yangui, he was able to 
have a large number.' (See my Asie Centrale, t. ii. p. 395.) The compiling 
method of the celebrated traveller likewise explains the possibility of his being 
able to dictate his book at Genoa, in 1295, to his fellow-prisoner and friend, 
Messer Rustizielo of Pisa, as if the documents had been lying before him. 
(Compare Marsden, Travels of Marco Polo, ^. :f.xxii\)." Humboldt: Cosmos. 
Otte's trans, vol. ii, p. 625, Note. 



58 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

its obscene ascetics, its diamonds and the strange tales 
of their acquisition, its sea-beds of pearl, and its power- 
ful sun ; the first in medieval times to give any dis- 
tinct account of the secluded Christian empire of 
Abyssinia and the semi-Christian island of Socotra ; to 
speak, though indeed dimly, of Zanzibar with its negroes 
and its ivory, and of the vast and distant Madagascar, 
bordering on the dark ocean of the South, with its rue 
and other monstrocities ; and, in a remotely oppo- 
site region, of Siberia and the Arctic Ocean, of dog- 
sledges, white bears, and reindeer-riding Tunguses." ' 

Never before had the people of Europe heard of 
such extraordinary wealth and unlimited resources as 
existed in the far-off countries visited by Marco Polo. 
His novel descriptions of stately, gold-covered palaces, 
of the royal magnificence of the entertainments of the 
Grand Khan, of the intoxicating fragrance of an endless 
profusion of rare flowers, of luscious fruits and sweet 
spicery, of heavily laden argosies of valuable merchan- 
dise floating on noble rivers, and of vast collections of 
gold, silver, and precious stones, were read with the 
most exaggerated conceptions of their reality. These 
enchanting details respecting Cathay and the adjacent 
countries were fully confirmed in the fourteenth century 
by Sir John Mandeville, who, in 1322, departed from 
England, and after an absence of thirty-four years in. 
different countries returned to write, in Latin, in French, 
and in English, a narrative of his extended travels."" 

*Ser Marco Polo. Yule. Second ed. vol. i. pp. 103, 104. 

^ " I John Maundevylle, knight, alle be it I be not worlhi, that was born in 
England, in the Town of Seynt Albones, passed the See, in the zeer of our Lord 
Jesu Crist mcccxxii, in the Day of Seynt Michelle ; and hidre to have ben 
long tyme over the See, and have seyn and gon thorghe manye dyverse Londes, 
and many Provynces and Kingdomes and lies, and have passed thorghe Tar- 
tarye, Percye, Ermonye, tlie litylle and the grete ; thorghe Lybye, Caldee, 
and a gret partie of Ethiope ; thorghe Amazoyne, Inde the lasse and 
the more, a gret partie ; and thorghe out many othere lies, that ben 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 59 

Dazzled by the splendor of the Orient the people 
of Western Europe were eager to enter into commercial 
intercourse with the inhabitants of Cathay. But there 
were innumerable barriers, both natural and political, 
obstructing all the overland ways to the East. Chief 
among the obstacles classed as political was the selfish 
exclusiveness of the different governments possessing 
the intervening territory. Had there been no national 
opposition to the establishment of a protected system 
of overland commerce between Western Europe and 
Eastern Asia, the distance was too great to be travelled 
over by slowly moving caravans. 

As early as the year 1 343 the aggressive enterprise 
of the Venetians had obtained from the sultan of 
Egypt the exclusive privilege of sending ships to trade 
in the ports of that country and of Syria. The mer- 
chants of Venice thereupon established commercial 
agencies at Alexandria and Damascus. Their factors 
penetrated Central and Southern Asia, and became 
active participants in the remunerative traffic of those 
regions. The prized productions of the islands in the 
Indian Ocean, such as pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and 
other spices, were transported by them to Venice and 
distributed through Europe. Although the ocean along 
the western and southern coast of Africa to the East 
was believed to be navigable, no attempt was made 
in the fourteenth century to sail by it to the Moluccas 
or Spice Islands. Concerning the early navigation of 
the sea-path along the coast of Africa, from the Pillars 
of Hercules to the Arabian Sea, Herodotus says that 
when Necho, king of Egypt, " had ceased digging the 

abouten Inde. * * * And zee schulleundirstonde, that I have put this Boke 
out of Latyn into Frensche and translated it azen out of Frensche into Eng- 
lyssche, that every Man of my Nacioun may undirstondeit." — MS. in Cottonian 
library, marked Titus, c. xvi. The Voiage and Travaile of Sir John Maunde- 
vile, Kt. By J. O. Halliwell. London, 1849. Prologue, pp. 4, 5. 



6o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

canal leading from the Nile to the Arabian Gulf, he 
sent certain Phoenicians in ships, with orders to sail 
between the Pillars of Hercules into the Northern 
Sea [the Mediterranean], and so to return to Egypt. 
These Phoenicians, taking their course from the Red 
Sea, entered the Southern Ocean. On the approach 
of autumn they landed in Libya [Africa] , and planted 
some corn in the place where they happened to find 
themselves. When this was ripe, and they had cut it 
down, they again departed. Having thus consumed 
two years, they in the third doubled the Pillars of 
Hercules, and returned to Egypt. Their account may 
obtain attention from others, but to me it seems in- 
credible, for they affirmed, that having sailed around 
Libya, they had the sun on their right hand. Thus 
was Libya for the first time known." ' 

Pliny, the celebrated encyclopedist of ancient times, 
says that " while the power of Carthage was at its 
height, Hanno published an account of a voyage which 
he made from Gades [Cadiz, Spain], to the extremity 
of Arabia.'' * * * Besides, we learn from Cornelius 
Nepos, that one Eudoxus, a contemporary of his, when 
he was fleeing from King Lathyrus, set out from the 
Arabian Gulf, and was carried as far as Gades.^ And 
long before him, Cselius Antipater informs us that he 
had seen a person who had sailed from Spain to 
-Ethiopia for the purpose of trade. The same Cor- 
nelius Nepos, when speaking of the northern circum- 
navigation, tells us that Q. Metellus Celer, the col- 
league of L. Afranius in the consulship, but then a 

* Herodotus: Melpomene xlii. 

' Caius Plinius Secundus, a Roman writer, born A. D. 23, and died A. D. 79. 

Hanno's expedition was undertaken about 570 B. C. 

' Eudoxus of Cyzicus, a Greek navigator, lived about 130 B. c. Ptolemy 
Lathyrus began his reign b. c. 117. Cornelius Nepos flourished in the cen- 
tury before the Christian era. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 6i 

proconsul in Gaul,' had a present made to him by the 
king of the Suevi,^ of certain Indians, who, sailing 
from India for the purpose of commerce, had been 
driven by tempests to Germany." ^ 

These statements were quoted in the fourteenth and 
fifteenth centuries to support the growing belief that 
India could be reached in a short time by sailing round 
the coast of Africa. But the want of nautical instru- 
ments restrained seamen from undertaking a voyage 
which carried them beyond the sight of familiar coasts 
and beneath new constellations. It was extremely 
perilous for European navigators to attempt to sail to 
India before they had acquired a knowledge of the use 
of the mariner's compass and of the astrolabe. The 
polarity of the magnet was known among oriental 
nations several centuries before the Christian era. The 
use of the magnetic needle for the guidance of vessels, 
however, did not become popular in Europe until as 
late as the fourteenth century."* The slowness with 
which its use grew into favor with European seamen is 
ascribable to the prevailing superstition which hung 

^ Supposed to have been in the year of the building of Rome, 691. 

' Suevi, the ancient inhabitants of that part of Germany between the Danube 
and the Baltic Sea. 

^ Historia Naturalis. lib. ii. cap. Ixvii. 

* " In Christian Europe the earliest mention of the use of the magnetic 
needle occurs in the pfelitico-satirical poem, called La Bible, by Guyot, of 
Provence, in 1 190, and in the description of Palestine by Jacobus, of Vitry, 
Bishop of Ptolemais, between 1204 and 1215. Dante (in his Parad. xii., 29) 
refers, in a simile, to the needle {ago) ' which points to the star.' " 

"Navarrete, in Mm Discurso historico sobre los progresos del Arte de Nave- 
gar en Espaiia, 1802, p. 28, recalls a remarkable passage in the Spanish Leyes 
de las Partidas (II. tit. ix., ley 28), of the middle of the thirteenth century : 
' The needle, which guides the seaman in the dark night, and shows him, both 
in good and bad weather, how to direct his course, is the intermediary agent 
{medianerd) between the loadstone {la piedrd) and the north star.' * * * 
See the passage in Las Siete Partidas del sabio Rey Don Alonso elix. (accord- 
ing to the usually adopted chronological order, Alonso the Xth). Madrid, 
1829. t. i. p. 473." — Humboldt: Cosmos, Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 629, and 
note. 



62 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

like a darkening cloud over the minds of the people. 
The stransfe conservatism of the aofe is well described 
in a letter written, as it seems, in the year i258, by 
Brunetto Latini, a learned Italian, Dante's tutor, to 
Guido Cavalcanti of Florence. Speaking of his visit 
to Roger Bacon, the English philosopher and monk, at 
Oxford, England, he says : 

" The Parliament being summoned to assemble at 
Oxford, I did not fail to see Friar Bacon as soon as I 
arrived, and [among other things] he showed me a 
black ugly stone, called a magnet, which has the sur- 
prising property of drawing iron to it ; and upon which, 
if a needle be rubbed, and afterwards fastened to a 
straw, so that it shall swim upon water, the needle will 
instantly turn toward the pole-star ; therefore, be the 
night ever so dark, so that neither moon nor star be 
visible, yet shall the mariner be able, by the help of the 
needle, to steer his vessel aright.^ 

" This discovery, which appears useful in so great 
a degree to all who travel by sea, must remain con- 
cealed until other times, because no master-mariner 
dares to use it lest he should fall under a supposition 
of his being a magician ; nor would even the sailors 
venture themselves out to sea under his command if 
he took with him an instrument which carries so great 
an appearance of being constructed under the influence 
of some infernal spirit. A time may come when these 
prejudices, which are of such great hindrance to re- 
searches into the secrets of nature, will probably be no 
more ; and then it will be that mankind shall reap the 
benefit of the labors of such learned men as Friar 

' " La viagncte piere laide et noire. Ob ete fer voleniers se joint. Lon toiichet 
oh une aguilct. Et en festue lon Jischie. Pitis lon victte en laigue et se tient 
desus. Et la point se tome contre lestoille. Quant la nuit feit tenebrous et lon 
ne "voie estoile ne lune, poet li mariner tenir droite voie." 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 63 

Bacon, and do justice to diat industry and intelligence 
for which he and they now meet with no other return 
than obloquy and reproach." ^ 

About the beginning of the fourteenth century, 
Flavia Gioja of Amalfi, in Naples, devised what were 
then known as the eight points of the superficies — the 
four cardinal and the four intermediate points of the 
compass-card.^ From this time forward the use of the 
magnet gradually found favor with European seamen. 

The most enthusiastic projector of voyages of dis- 
covery undertaken to ascertain the character of the 
land and water divisions of the earth, in the early part 
of the fifteenth century, was Prince Henry, the son of 
King John I. of Portugal.^ When twenty-one years of 
age, he witnessed, In 141 5, the taking of Ceuta, on 
the northern coast of Africa, opposite the southern ex- 
tremity of Portugal. While at this opulent city, he 
learned from its merchants and traders that the conti- 
nent extended far southward and was inhabited by 
many strange people. Fixing his residence on the 
promontory of Sagres, at the southwestern extremity 
of Portugal, he began to send the most experienced sea- 
men in the service of Portugal to explore the western 
coast of Africa. For a time Cape de Nao, in north lati- 
tude, 28° 45' was considered the limit of safe navigation. 
It was a common saying among Portuguese seamen, 

^ The Monthly Magazine, or British Register. London, 1802. vol. xiii. 
part I. p. 449. The Life of Prince Henry of Portugal. By Henry Major. 
London, 1868. pp. 58, 59. 

^ " We are told by Antonio Beccadelli, surnamed II Panormita from his 
birthplace, Palermo, and who was a contemporary of Prince Henry, that sailors 
were first indebted to Amalfi for the use of the magnet — '■Prima dedit nauiis 
ustim magnelis Amalphis ' j and 'Ifiventrix prcBcIara fuit magnetis Amalphis.' 
* * * Yhe former of these lines is quoted from II Panormita by Henricus 
Brenemanus, in his Dissertatio de Republica Amalfitana, and Klaproth has 
added the latter." Life of Prince Henry of Portugal. Major, p. 59. 

*Dom Henrique was born at Oporto, March 4, 1394. 



64 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

that " He who should pass Cabo cle Nao, either will 
return or not." ' Beyond it was Cape Bojador, in 26° 
1 2' north latitude. This rocky headland, for a time, was 
also deemed perilous and impassable. " Beyond this 
cape " it was said, ** there is no people whatever ; 
the ground is as barren as that of Libya, — no water, no 
trees, no grass in it ; the sea is so shallow that at a 
league from the land it is only a fathom deep ; the cur- 
rents are so strong that a ship passing the cape cannot 
return."^ The attempts made by Prince Henry's mari- 
ners to double the two capes are thus commented upon 
by Antonio Galvano, the Portuguese historian, 3 in his 
treatise respecting the routes by which spices came 
from India to the year i55o : " In those days none of 
the Portuguese had yet passed Cabo de Nao in 29 de- 
grees of latitude." But after it was doubled, " when 
they came to another cape named Bojador, there was 
not one of them that dared to risk his life beyond it. 
The prince was exceedingly displeased with their want 
of confidence and unmanly timidity." '^ Of the number 

' " Qiiem passar o Cabo de Nao, ou voltara ou nao." 

* Chronica do descobrimento e conquista de Guine, escripta per mandado 
de el Rey. D. Affonso V. sob a direc^ao scientifica e secundo as instruc9oes do 
illustre infante D. Henrique, pelo chronista Gomes Eannes de Azurara, fiel- 
mente transladada do manuscrito original contemporaneo que se conserva na 
Bibliotheca Real de Pariz. Edited by the Visconde da Carreira, with introduc- 
tion and notes by the Vicomte de Santarem. Paris, 1841. cap. viii. 

'Antonio Galvano was born about the year 1502. In 1538 he was appointed 
by the king of Portugal governor of the Moluccas or Spice Islands. He was 
recalled about the year 1545, and died in 1557. 

* Tratado, que compos o nobre & notauel capitao Antonio Galuao, dos 
diuersos & desuayrados caminhos, por onde nos tempos passados a pimenta 
& especearia veyo da India as nossas partes, & assi de todos os descobrimen- 
tos antigos & modernos, que sao feitos ate a era de mil & quinhentos & 
cincoenta. * * * Impressa em casa de Joam de Barreira impressor del rey 
nosso senhor, na Rua de Sa Mameda. [Lisboa.] 

Vide The discoveries of the world, from their first original unto the year 
of our Lord 1555, by Antonio Galvano, governor of Ternate. Corrected, 
quoted, and published in England, by Richard Hakluyt, (1610). Now re- 
printed, with the original Portuguese text, and edited by Vice-admiral Bethune, 
C. B. London, 1862. Hakluyt Society publication. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 65 

of seamen that had made unsuccessful attempts to pass 
the cape was Gil Eannes. Disappointed as Prince 
Henry was by these failures to accomplish that which 
he had ordered them to do, he nevertheless gave his 
timorous navigators all the encouragement he could to 
induce them to make other and more persistent efforts 
to double the formidable headland. In 1434, he again 
sent Gil Eannes to explore the coast beyond Cape 
Bojador. Before the latter departed the prince en- 
deavored to dispel the terrifying fancies that might 
deter him from attempting to prosecute the undertak- 
ine for which he was commissioned. " You cannot 
incur such peril " said the prince, " that the promised 
reward shall not be commensurate thereto. It is very 
strange to me that you should be governed by a fear 
of something of which you are ignorant, for if the 
things reported had any authentication, I should not 
find fault with you for believing them. The stories of the 
four seamen driven out of their course to Flanders or 
to the ports to which they were sailing are not to be 
credited, for they had not and could not have used the 
needle and the chart. But do you go notwithstanding, 
and make your voyage without being influenced by 
their opinions, and, by the grace of God, you will not 
fail to secure, by your enterprise, both honor and com- 
pensation."^ Gil Eannes followed the advice of his 
sanguine patron, and succeeded the same year in doub- 
ling Cape Bojador and in exploring a part of the coast 
beyond it. 

South of Cape Bojador it was believed that a zone 
of scorching heat would be entered by vessels sailing 
toward the equator. Pliny adverts to it in these 
words : " The middle of the earth, over which is the 

'Chronica do descobrimento e conquista de Guine. cap. ix. 



66 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

path of the sun, is parched and set on fire by the lu- 
minary, and is consumed by being so near the heat. 
There are only tv/o of the zones which are temperate 
— those which lie between the torrid and the frigid 
zones — and these are separated from each other, in con- 
sequence of the scorching heat of the heavenly bodies."' 
Conceiving this statement to be as fallacious as many 
other declarations of the early geographers had been, 
Prince Henry, in 1454, sent Luigi da Cadamosto, a 
Venetian navigator, to explore the coast beyond Cape 
Bojador so long invested with so many imaginary ter- 
rors. In 1462 Pedro de Cintra sailed three hundred 
miles beyond Sierre Leone. 

As it was necessary for seamen to know the latitude 
and longitude of the places to which they desired to 
sail, another nautical instrument besides the mariner's 
compass was needed by them."" The adaptation of an 
instrument called the astrolabe, by which the latitudes 

' Historia Naturalis. lib. ii. cap. Ixviii. 

' The distance of a place, north or south of the equator, was determined by 
ascertaining with the astrolabe the elevation of the pole of the heavens above 
the plane of the horizon. 

The distance of one place from another, east or west of a meridian, was 
obtained by ascertaining the difference of time at the two points ; the difference 
of time being one hour to each space of fifteen degrees of longitude. Although 
a navigator in the latter part of the fifteenth century could determine with his 
astrolabe the time of the place where he was in port, from the altitude of the sun 
or other heavenly bodies, the want of an accurate chronometer made it impossi- 
ble for him to know the exact time of a place elsewhere. Pigafetta, who 
sailed round the world in 1519-1522, says in his treatise on naviga- 
tion : " Pilots now are satisfied with knowing the latitude, and are so pre- 
sumptuous that they refuse to hear longitude mentioned." — MS. in Ambro- 
sian Library, Milan. 

To obtain a practical solution of the difficulties which perplexed seamen in 
determining the longitude of places, the Spanish government offered a thousand 
crowns, in 1598, for an accurate method of ascertaining the time of distant 
places. Not long afterward the government of the United Provinces of the 
Netherlands offered ten thousand florins for similar information, and, in 1714, 
the parliament of Great Britain passed an act proffering a gift of money to any 
person who should discover the best means of ascertaining longitude. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. dj 

of places could be determined, apparently originated 
with King John II. of Portugal.^ 

It is said that " when Prince Henry began the dis- 
covery of Guinea that all mariners were accustomed to 
sail along the coasts, and that they always steered their 
courses by observing the physical features of the land, 
which are still used as guides." ■ 

"This method of navigating permitted them to make 
voyages from place to place ; but when they wished 
to sail in the open sea, losing sight of the coast and 
standing out on the wide ocean, they perceived the 
numerous errors they had made in calculating and 
judging the day's run, for they had been accustomed 
to allow so much way to the ship in the twenty-four 
hours on account of the currents and the other myste- 
ries of the sea, the facts of which are clearly demon- 
strated by navigating by altitude. But as necessity is 
the teacher of all arts, in the time of King John II., 
the matter of navigation was assigned by him to Mas- 
ter Roderic, and Master Joseph, a Jew, (who were his 
physicians,) and to one Martin of Bohemia, a native of 
those parts, who boasted of being a pupil of John of 
Monteregius, a famous astronomer among the profes- 
sors of that science,^ and these devised the way of navi- 
gating by the sun's altitude, and they made tables of 

^ Joam II. of Portugal reigned from 148 1 to 1495. 

"Astrolabes designed for the determination of time and geographical lati- 
tudes by meridian altitudes, and capable of being employed at sea, underwent 
gradual improvement from the time that the astrolabium of the Majorican 
pilots was in use, which is described by Raymond Lully, in 1295, in his Arte 
de navegar, till the invention of the instrument made by Martin Behaim, in 
1484, at Lisbon, and which was, perhaps, only a simplification of the meteoro- 
scope of his friend Regiomontanus." — Humboldt : Cosmos. Otte's trans, 
vol. ii. pp. 630, 631. 

"^ Martin Behaim was born in Nuremberg about the year 1459. His com- 
mercial business induced him to visit Portugal about the year 1480, where, it is 
said, he became a pupil of Johann MiiUer, known as Regiomontanus. He accom- 
panied Diogo Cam to the Congo, in 14S4. Pie afterward resided on the island 
of Fayal, one of the Azores, for a number of years. His celebrated terrestrial 



68 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

his declination such as are now used by navigators, 
now more complete than they were at the beginning 
when the great wooden astrolabes were first used."* 

This novel and serviceable nautical instrument, first 
made of wood and of a triangular shape, was soon in 
<jeneral use on Portutruese vessels. The astrolabe was 
improved from time to time. At the beginning of the 
seventeenth century, when the French seaman, Samuel 
de Champlain, was exploring'the St. Lawrence River 
and its tributaries, it was a disk of brass, having one of 
its faces marked with degrees and minutes. A brass 
rule, called a label, with sight-holes, turning upon a 
pivot at the centre of the instrument, moved over the 
marked circumference of the disk. At the zenith part 
of the instrument there was a small ring by which it 
could be suspended from the thumb of the person taking 
an observation. When used the astrolabe was turned 
to the sun, so that his rays could freely pass through 
the two sight-holes of the label. In this position the 
altitude of the sun was indicated on the divided limb of 
the instrument. Opposite the zenith point was a small 
eyelet from which a weight could be suspended to keep 
the instrument from shaking when used. 

In the fifteenth century the day's run of a ship was 
commonly reckoned by the pilot. In an old nautical 
work it is said : " In order to know the speed of the 
ship over the length of the course the pilot must set 
down in his journal the progress the vessel has made 
according to hours ; and to do this he must know that 
the greatest distance that a ship advances in an hour is 
four miles, and with feebler breezes, three or only 

globe was constructed by him, at Nuremberg, about the year 1492. He died at 
Lisbon, on the twenty-ninth of July, 1506. 

'Asia de Joam de Barros dos fectos que os Portugueses fizcram no descob- 
rimento & conquista dos mares & terras do Oriente. Impressa per Germao Gal- 
harde em Lixboa : a xxviij. de Junho anno de m. v":, lij. dec. i. lib. iv. 
cap ii. 




A representation of the astrolabe found in 1S67 in the county of North 
Renfrew, province of Ontario, Canada, supposed to have been lost by 
Champlain on his way to Ottawa in 1613. The diameter of the instrument 
is "five inches and five-eights." Vide " Champlain's astrolabe." By A. 
J. Russell. Montreal, 1879. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 69 

two." ^ Time was measured by sand-glasses, or am- 
polleias, as they were called by the Spaniards. Forty- 
eight changes of these half-hour glasses equalled the 
space of a day.^ 

In 1487 the persistent enterprise of the Portuguese 
in exploring a commercial route to India along the 
west and south coasts of Africa was notably signalized 
by the success attending the expedition commanded by 
the adventurous seaman, Bartolomeu Dias. The in- 
domitable zeal of this Portuguese mariner enabled him 
to reach the southern extremity of Africa, where he 
found a bold promonitory to which he gave the name 
of Cabo Tormentoso, (the Stormy Cape,) commemora- 
tive of the adverse winds and bad weather encountered 
there. King John II., personally appreciating the good 
fortune attending the explorations of the navigators of 
Portugal in this direction during the previous seventy 
years, in which time more than six thousand miles of 
coast-line had been inspected by them, called the prom- 
ontory discovered by Dias, Cabo de Boa Esperan9a 
(the Cape of Good Hope).^ 

' Arte de nauegar. Por el maestro Pedro de Medina. Valladolld. 1545. 

''"I find the first mention of the application of the log in a passage of 
Pigafetta's journal of Magellan's voyage of circumnavigation, which long lay 
buried among the manuscripts in the Ambrosian Library at Milan. It is there 
said that in the month of January, 1521, when Magellan had already arrived in 
the Pacific, ' Seconda la misura che facevamo del viaggio colla catena a poppa noi 
percorrevaino da to in 70 leghe algiomo,' [following the measure which we made 
of our progress with the chain at the stern, we ran from sixty to seventy leagues 
a day]. (Amoretti. Primo Viaggio intorno al Globo terracqneo ossia Naviga- 
zione fattadal Cavaliere Antonio Pigafetta sulla squadra del Magaglianes, 1800. 
p. 46.) What can this arrangement of a chain at the hinder part of the ship 
{catena a poppa), ' which we used throughout the entire voyage to measure the 
way,' have been except an apparatus similar to our log ? " — Humboldt : Cosmos. 
Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 633. 

*The Cape of Good Hope is in 34° 22' south latitude. 

It is said that Dias found by the astrolabe that the cape was in 45° south 
latitude, and that it was 3, 100 leagues distant from Lisbon. This distance, it is 
related, Dias set down, league by league, on a marine chart, which he presented 
to King John II. Historia General de las Indias. Bartolome de las Casas. 
lib. i. cap. vii. 



CHAPTER III. 

1474-1492. 

The success attending the voyages of the Portuguese 
along the coast of Africa suggested to Cristoforo 
Colombo ' (or Christopher Columbus, as he is more 
commonly called by those speaking English), the possi- 
bility of sailing by a shorter way to India in another 
direction. Ferdinand Columbus, in his history of the 
life and achievements of his father,^ makes no attempt to 

* Cristoforo Colombo was born in the city of Genoa, about the year 1435. 
His father, Dominico Colombo, was a wool-comber. The navigator married, in 
Lisbon, Doiia Felipa, the daughter of Bartolomeo Monis de Perestrello, a dis- 
tinguished mariner, who had been in the service of Prince Henry of Portugal. 

Ferdinand Columbus, in his history of the life and achievements of his father, 
remarks : " So it is that some, who would cast a cloud upon his fame, say he 
was of Nervi, others of Cugureo, and others of Bugiesco, all small towns near 
the city of Genoa, and upon its coast. Others, who wish to exalt him, say he 
was a native of Savona, others of Genoa, and oth*s, more vain, make him of 
Piacenza, in which city there are some honorable persons of his family and 
tombs with the arms and inscriptions of the family of Colombi, this being the 
common surname of his ancestors, though he, complying with the customs of the 
country where he went to live and begin a new condition of life, altered the 
word that it might be like the old name, and designated the direct from the 
collateral line, calling himself Colon. * * * And the surname of Colon- 
which he revived was appropriate, which in Greek signifies a member, and his 
Christian name being Christopher, designate him as being a member of Christ, 
by whom salvation was conveyed to those Indian people." — Histoire del Signore 
Don Fernando Colombo, cap. i. 

''■ Fernando Colombo, an illegitimate son of the admiral, was born in Cor- 
dova about the year 1487. After his father's discovery of the New World, he 
was made page to Prince Juan, the son of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. 
He accompanied his father in his fourth voyage, in 1502, and after the latter's 
death, sailed twice to the West Indies. He was excellently educated, and was 
the author of several works. His library, it is said, contained more than twenty 
thousand books and manuscripts, which, after his death, became the property 
of the cathedral of Seville. The manuscript of his history of the life of his 

70 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 71 

conceal this fact from publicity. With an apparent 
intention to give all the information which might be 
desired concerning the great discoverer's first thoughts 
respecting the practicability of reaching Asia by sailing 
in a westerly direction, he frankly tells what originated 
them in the mind of the admiral. " As one thing leads 
to another, and one thought to another, in this way, 
while the admiral was in Portugal, he began to infer 
that as the Portuguese sailed so far southward, it was 
also feasible to steer westward, and that land might 
likely be found in this direction. In order to be more 
assured and satisfied in this matter, he began to review 
the cosmographies which he had read, and to note what 
astronomical reasons would support this theory.' That 

father was lost before the work appeared in Spanish. It is said that Luis Colon, 
duke of Veragua, a dissipated grandson of the navigator, went to Genoa about 
the yean 568, taking Fernando's manuscript with him, and placed it in the hands 
of Baltano de Fornari, by whom it was transferred to Giorgio Baptista Marini, 
who had it translated into Italian, after which it was printed in Venice in this 
language, and also in Latin. Alfonso de Ulloa's Italian translation of it was 
published, in Venice, in 1571, entitled Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo ; 
nelli quali s' ha particolare, & vera relatione della vita, & de 'fatti dell 'Ammi- 
raglio D. Cristoforo Colombo, suo-padre. There are several English translations 
of Fernando Colombo's history. Vide Collection of voyages and travels by 
[A. & J.] Churchhill. London, 1732. vol. ii. pp. 499-628. Pinkerton's Col- 
lection of voyages and travels. London, 1819. vol. ii. pp. 1-155. 

^ Columbus, in his investigations, no doubt, became informed concerning 
the arguments advanced by the Greek astronomer, Anaximander, in the sixth 
century before the Christian era, respecting the globular form of the earth. He 
evidently read what Aristotle wrote in the fifth century of the Christian era : 
" As to the figure of the earth, it must necessarily be spherical, * * * And, 
moreover, from the visible phenomena, for if it were not so, the eclipses of the 
moon would not have such sections as they have. For in the configurations in 
the course of a month, the deficient part takes all different shapes ; it is straight, 
and concave, and convex ; but in eclipses it always has the line of division con- 
vex ; wherefore, since the moon is eclipsed in consequence of the interposition 
of the earth, the periphery of the earth must be the cause of this by having a 
spherical form. And again, from the appearance of the stars, it is clear not only 
that the earth is round, but that its size is not very great ; for when we go a little 
distance to the south or to the north, the circle of the horizon becomes palpably 
different, so that the stars overheard undergo a great change, and are not the 
same to those that travel to the north and to the south. For some stars are seen 



72 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

he might be more enlightened concerning his assump- 
tjcn, he paid attention to what was said by people 
respecting it, especially by seamen. His diligent investi- 
gations soon led him to conclude that there were many 
lands west of the Canaries and the Cape Verd Islands, 
and that it was practicable to sail to and discover 
them." ' 

The remarkable aptitude displayed by Columbus 
in formine his conclusions that the Atlantic Ocean was 
navigable, and that ships might pass across its unex- 
plored expanse to Cathay, was the natural expression 
of his peculiar passion for geographical knowledge. In 
a letter written to their Spanish majesties, King Ferdi- 
nand and Queen Isabella, in i5oi, he says: "I went 
to sea when quite young, and have continued my sea- 
faring until now ; and this profession makes those who 
follow it eager to discover the secrets of this globe. It 
is now forty years that I have been sailing to all those 
places which are at present visited, and I have dealt 
and talked with learned people, ecclesiastics as well as 
laymen, Latins, Greeks, Indians, Moors, and many 
other people of different nations, and our Lord has 
favored this inclination, and I have received from him 

in Egypt and at Cyprus, but are not seen in the countries nortjj of them ; and the 
stars that in the north are visible while they make a complete circu.it there [in 
Egypt and at Cyprus], undergo a setting. So that from this it is manifest, not 
only that the form of the earth is round, but also that it is not a very large sphere ; 
for otherwise the difference would not be so obvious to persons making so small 
a change of place. Wherefore we may judge that those persons who connect the 
region in the neighborhood of the Pillars of Hercules with that toward India, and 
who assert that in this way the sea is one, do not assert things very improbable. 
They confirm this conjecture, moreover, by elephants, which are said to be of 
the same species toward each extreme of the earth, as if this circumstance was 
a consequence of the conjunction of the extreme parts. The mathematicians, who 
try to calculate the measure of the circumference, make it amount to 400,000 
stadia ; whence we infer that the earth is not only spherical, but that it is not 
large compared with the magnitude of the other stars " — De "oelo. lib. iL 
cap. xiv. 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. v. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 73 

the spirit of understanding. He has made me very- 
skillful in navigation, and to know much in astronomy, 
in geometry, and mathematics. God has given me the 
knowledge and the ability to portray the globe, and 
also to delineate cities, rivers, islands, and ports in their 
proper situation. During my life I have examined and 
endeavored to see all books of cosmography, history, 
and philosophy, and of the other sciences, so that our 
Lord has sensibly opened my mind in order that I may 
sail from here to the Indies, and has made me ex- 
tremely anxious to do it."^ 

Columbus's irrepressible desire to possess all the 
information he could acquire respecting the navigable 
water-ways of the Atlantic also led him to sail over the 
sea-path to Iceland and to the south coast of Africa, at 
the equator. In his geographical work, written " to 
show that all the five zones are habitable," he says : 
" * In February, 1467, I sailed myself a hundred leagues 
beyond Thule, the northern part of which is seventy 
degrees distant from the equator, and not sixty-three 
degrees as some will have it to be ; nor does it lie upon 
the line where Ptolemy's West begins, but much more 
to the westward, and to this island, which is as large as 
England, the English trade, especially those from Bris- 
tol.^ At the time I was there the sea was not frozen, 
but the tides were so great that in some places it 
swelled twenty-six fathoms and fell as much.' The 
truth is, that the Thule of which Ptolemy speaks lies 
where he says, and this is called by the moderns Prize- 
land." Again he says : " I have followed sea-faring for 
twenty-three years without being on shore any space 
of time worth mentioning, and I have seen all the East 
and all the West, and have been to the North where 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. iv. 

* Iceland lies between 63° 24' and 66° 33' north latitude. 



74 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

England is situated, and even to Guinea." He also 
says that he went to sea when fourteen years old, and 
ever after that led a sea-farino- life.'' 

Among the motives influencing him to think that 
he could sail to Cathay by the way of the Atlantic 
Ocean were the statements of geographical writers. 
By them it was said " that a great part of the globe 
had already been travelled over, and there only re- 
mained to be discovered and made known the space 
lying between the eastern limits of India, known to 
Ptolemy and Marinus, and the West, where are the 
islands Azores^ and those of Cape Verd,^ the most 
western lands yet discovered.* * * * ^Iq con- 

' Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. iv. 

" The Azores or Western Islands, about eight hundred miles west of Portu- 
gal, lie in an oblique line, northwest and southeast, between 36° 50' and 39° 
50' north latitude and 24° 30' and 31° 20' west longitude. The Azores, fre- 
quently called Terceiras, were discovered in 1439 by Josua van der Berg, a 
Flemish merchant, who was carried in his ship to them in a storm. They were 
named Azores from the number of goshawks found on them. They were not 
inhabited when discovered. 

' The Cape Verd Islands, three hundred and twenty miles west of Cape 
Verd on the west coast of Africa, lie between 14° 45' and 17° 13' north latitude 
and between 22° 45' and 25° 25' west longitude. 

* Claudius Ptolemceus, an Egyptian astronomer and geographer, lived, in 
the second century at Alexandria. His System of Geography, [^r£0Oypa(pZHrf 
^Acpr]y7](jl?y) contained in eight books, was a standard work for fourteen 
centuries. During the first part of the sixteenth century twenty-one editions 
of the geography, with editions and emendations, were published. According to 
Ptolemy, all the known part of the earth, from the first meridian, or the Canary 
Islands, eastwardly, on the parallel of Rhodes, measured seventy-two thousand 
stadia, or one hundred and eighty degrees, which he deemed to be the half of the 
circumference of the globe. But the extent he was acquainted with was really 
measured by one hundred and twenty degrees, which made the circumference 
one third less than it is. 

Marinus of Tyre, a Greek geographer, lived about 150 a.d. This cos- 
mographer supposed that the country of the Seres, or Sinae (China), the far- 
thest part of India known to the ancients, was fifteen hours, by the course of 
the sun, or two hundred and twenty-five degrees east of the first meridian pass- 
ing through the Fortunate (Canary) Islands. According to our present geo- 
graphical measurements, the distance given by Marinus was not more than one 
hundred and thirty degrees, leaving two hundred and thirty the remaining 
distance from China eastwardly to the Canary Islands. Following the deduc- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 75 

sidered that this space, lying between the eastern limits 
[of India] known to Marinus and the islands of the 
Cape Verd group, could not be more than a third part 
of the great circumference of the globe, since Marinus 
had gone toward the East fifteen hours of the twenty- 
four into which the circumference of the earth is 
divided, and therefore to go [still farther eastwardly] 
to reach the Cape Verd Islands there were nine hours, 
[of the circumference to be passed over], as it is said 
that Marinus began his investigations in the West. * 
* * He conceived that since Marinus had given 
in his cosmography an account of fifteen hours or 
parts of the globe eastwardly, and had not reached the 
limits of the East, it followed that its bounds must be 
much beyond, and consequently the farther the land of 
the East extended eastwardly, the nearer this land was 
to the Cape Verd Islands in the West, and that if the 
space were chiefly water it might easily be sailed in a 
few days, and if it were mainly land it would sooner 
be discovered by sailing westward, because it would be 
nearer to the Cape Verd Islands.^ * * * 'pj^^ 
fifth reason, which induced him to believe that the dis- 
tance this way was short, was the opinion of Alfragra- 
nus and his followers, who make the circumference of 
the srlobe much less than all other writers and cosmoQf- 

tions of Marinus, there were only one hundred and thirty-five degrees of 
distance between China, going eastwardly, and the Fortunate Islands. 

* " Marinus, the Tyrian, misled by the length of time occupied in the navi- 
gation from Myos Hormos to India, by the erroneously assumed direction of the 
major axis of the Caspian from west to east, and by the over-estimation of the 
length of the land route to the country of the Seres, gave the old continent a 
breadth of 225°, instead of 129°. The Chinese coast was thus advanced to 
the Sandwich Islands. Columbus naturally preferred this result to that of 
Ptolemy, according to which Quinsay should have been found in the meridian 
of the eastern part of the archipelago of the Carolinas. Ptolemy, in the Alma- 
gest (ii. i), places the coast of Sinae at 180°, and in his Geography (lib. i. cap. 
12) at 1775^°." — Humboldt : Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 645. Note. 



7^ DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

raphers, allowing fifty-six miles and two-thirds to a 
degree.' Whence he inferred that as the entire cir- 
cumference of the globe was of such an extent, the 
third part was small, which Marinus left unknown. * 
* * And Seneca, in his first book of nature, who 
considers the knowledge of this world as nothing when 
compared with that which is acquired in the next life, 
says a ship may sail in a few days with a fair wind from 
the coast of Spain to that of India. And if it be true, 
as some believe, that Seneca wrote tragedies, we may 
infer that he speaks of the same thing in the chorus of 
his Medea: 

' Venient annis 
Saecula seris, quibus Oceanus 
Vincula rerum laxet, et ingens 
Pateat tellus, Typhysque novos 
Detegat orbes, nee sit terris 
Ultima Thule,' 

" * In the last years there will come an age in which 
Ocean shall loosen the bonds of things ; and a great 
land will be accessible ; and another Tiphys shall dis- 
cover new worlds, and Thule shall no longer be the 
extremity of the earth.' =* This prediction m^y be con- 
sidered really fulfilled in the person of the admiral. 
* * * Marco Polo, the Venetian, and John Man- 
deville, in their travels say that they went much farther 
eastward than Ptolemy and Marinus mention, who, 
although they do not speak of the Eastern Sea, yet by 

' Alfraganius or Al Fergani, an Arabian astronomer, lived in the earlier 
part of the ninth century. 

"^ Medea, act. ii, 

Lucius Annceus Seneca, a Stoic philosopher and tragic poet, was born at 
Corduba, Spain, about 5 B.C., and died 65 a.d. 

Tiphys was the name of the pilot of tbe ship of the Argonauts. 

Thule, an island in the extreme part of Northern Europe, as known in the 
time of Ptolemy. The island is supposed by some to have been the Shetland 
Islands, by others the Faroe group, and by others Iceland. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. yj 

the account they give of the East it may be assumed 
that India is not far distant from Africa and Spain."' 

Ferdinand Columbus further says that his father 
expected to find, "before he came to India, a very 
convenient island or continent, from which he might 
pursue with more advantage his main design. This 
hope was grounded upon the statements of many wise 
men and philosophers, who believed that the greatest 
part of this terraqueous globe was land, or that there 
was more land than water, which, if true, he assumed 
that between the coast of Spain and the limits of India 
then known, there were many islands and a considera- 
ble extent of main-land. * * * A pilot of the king 
of Portugal, named Martin Vicente, told him that, being 
at one time four hundred and fifty leagues westward of 
Cape St. Vincent, he found and picked up In the sea a 
piece of wood Ingeniously carved, but not with iron, 
which led him to believe, as the wind had been blowing 
from the west for several days, that the piece of wood 
had drifted from some island lying toward the west. 
Then one Pedro Correa, who had married the sister of 
the admiral's wife, told him that at the island of Porto 
Santo ^ he had seen another piece of wood, brought by 
the same winds, as nicely carved as the piece already 
mentioned, and that canes had been found there so 
thick that each joint would hold more than four quarts 
of wine, which reports he said he communicated to the 
king of Portugal while talking to him about these 
matters. The pieces of cane were shown to him. 
There being no place in our parts where such cane 
grew, he Inferred it to be true that the wind had 
brouo-ht the cane from some neiehborine islands or else 
from India. For Ptolemy, in the first book of his 

' Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. vi, vii. 

' Porto Santo, a small island northeast of the island of Madeira. 



78 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

geography, in the seventeenth chapter, says there is 
such cane in the eastern parts of India. And some of 
the people Hving on the islands, particularly on the 
Azores, told him that when the west wind blew for a 
long time the sea drifted some pieces of pine-wood 
upon those islands, particularly on the islands Gratiosa 
and Fayal, there being no pine-wood in all those parts, 
and that the sea cast upon the island of Flores, another 
of the Azores, the bodies of two dead men, who were 
very broad-faced and different in appearance from Chris- 
tians. At Cape Verd and thereabouts they said that 
they once saw some covered canoes or boats which the 
people believed were driven there by stress of weather 
while the persons in them were going from one island 
to another. Nor were these the only grounds he then 
had which seemed reasonable, for there were those 
who told him that they had seen some islands in the 
western ocean. * * =!= These persons he did not 
believe, because he discovered from their own words 
and statements that they had not sailed one hundred 
leagues to the westward, and that they had been de- 
ceived by some rocks, thinking them to be islands ; or 
else, perhaps, they were some of those floating islands 
which are drifted about by the waves, and which the 
sailors call aguados. * * * 

" He says, moreover, that in the year 1484, a man 
came to Portugal from the island of Madera ' to besf a 
caraval of the king to discover a country which he af- 
firmed he saw every year, and always after the same 
manner, he agreeing with others who said they had 
seen the island from the Azores. On this account the 

^The island of Madeira (Wood) lies off the west coast of Africa, between 
32° 37' and 32° 52' north latitude and i6° 38' and 17° 16' west longitude. It is 
thirty-four miles long. The island of Porto Santo is twenty-five miles north- 
east of it. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 79 

Portuguese placed some islands thereabouts on the 
charts and maps made at that time ; and also because 
Aristotle, in his book of wonderful things, affirms that 
it was reported that some Carthaginian merchants had 
sailed over the Atlantic Ocean to a most fruitful island. 
* * * This island the Portuguese inserted in their 
maps, calling it Antilla, and though they did not give 
it the same situation designated by Aristotle, yet none 
placed it more than two hundred leagues due west from 
the Canaries and the Azores. Some believe it to be 
the island of the Seven Cities peopled by the Portu- 
guese at the time that Spain was conquered by the 
Moors, in 714, at which time, they say, seven bishops 
with their people embarked and sailed to this island, 
where each of them built a city ; and in order that 
none of their people might think of returning to Spain, 
they burnt the ships, tackle, and all things necessary 
for sailing.' * * * j^- ^^g ^jg^ g^j^^ ^.j^^^ jj^ ^^le 

time of Prince Henry of Portugal, a Portuguese ship 
was driven by stress of weather to this island of Antilla, 
where the men went on shore, and were conducted by 
the islanders to their church to learn whether or not 
they were Christians and acquainted with the Roman 
ceremonies. After perceiving that they were, the people 
of the island importuned them to remain till their king 
came, who was then absent, and who would be de- 
lighted to see them and would give them many pres- 
ents. * * * But the master and the seamen were 
afraid of being detained, suspecting these people did 
not wish to be discovered and might for this reason 
■ burn their ship. 

* Various fictions were current in the middle ages respecting the situation 
of the island of the Seven Cities, and a number of expeditions went in search 
of it with unsuccessful results. Mercator, Ortelius, and Locke place the island 
in 28° north latitude. 



8o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" On this account they returned to Portugal, hoping 
to be rewarded by the prince for what they had done. 
He reproved them severely and bid them return at 
once to the island, but the master through fear ran 
away from Portugal with the ship and men. It is re- 
ported that while the seamen were at church on the 
island the ship-boys gathered sand for the cook-room, 
the third part of which they found to be pure gold. 
* * * Seneca, in his fourth book, tells us that 
Thucydides ' speaks of an island called Atlantica, 
which in the time of the Peloponnesian war was en- 
tirely, or the greater part of it, submerged ; whereof 
Plato also makes mention in his Timseus."^ 

While Columbus resided at Lisbon obtaining infor- 
mation from geographers and seamen respecting the 
feasibility of sailing westward to Cathay, he entered 
into correspondence with Paolo Toscanelli, a Florentine 
physician and astronomer.^ The latter sent him a copy 
of a letter which he had written in Latin to Ferdinand 
Martinez, a prebendary of Lisbon. The communica- 
tion addressed to Columbus, is dated Florence, June 
25, 1474. As translated the letter is as follows : 

" To Christopher Colon, Paul, the physician, wishes 
health. 

" I apprehend your noble and earnest desire to sail 
to those parts where spices grow, and therefore, in 
answ^- to your letter, I send another, which some time 

'Thucydides, a Greek historian, born B.C. 471. 

'^Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. ix, x. 

*" Paolo Toscanelli was so greatly distinguished as an astronomer that 
Behaim's teacher, Regiomontanus, dedicated to him, in 1463, his work, De 
Quadratura Circiili, directed against the Cardinal Nicolaus de Cusa. He con- 
structed the great gnomon in the church of Santa Maria Novella at Florence, 
and died in 1482, at the age of eighty-five, without having lived long enough to 
enjoy the pleasure of learning the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope by Diaz, 
and of the tropical part of the new continent by Columbus." — Humboldt : 
Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 644. Note. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 8i 

ago I wrote to a friend of mine, in the service of the 
king of Portugal, before the wars of Castile, in answer 
to one he wrote me by his highness's command, upon 
the same subject. I also send you a sea-chart similar 
to the one I sent him, which may satisfy your inquiries. 
The copy of that letter is the following : 

" To Ferdinand Martinez, canon of Lisbon, Paul, 
the physician, wishes health. 

" I am gratified to hear of your intimacy with the 
most serene and magnificent king. Although I have 
often spoken of the short distance by water from here 
to the Indies where spices grow, which way, in my 
opinion, is shorter than that taken along the coast of 
Guinea, yet you inform me that his highness would have 
me explain and demonstrate it in order that it may be 
comprehended and tested. Although I could better 
elucidate the configuration of the earth with a globe in 
my hand, nevertheless, I will make the matter more easy 
and intelligible by exhibiting the route on such a chart 
as is used in navigation. I therefore send one to his 
majesty, made and drawn with my own hand, on which 
are delineated the extreme limits of the West, from Ice- 
land, in the north, to the farthest part of Guinea, in the 
south, with all the intermediate islands. Opposite, in 
the West, the beginning of the Indies is delineated, 
with the islands and places to which you may go, 
representing how far you may steer from the north pole 
toward the equator, and for ho w long a time, that is, how 
many leagues you may sail before you come to' those 
places where are to be found all kinds of spices and 
precious stones. Do not think it strange if I call the 
country where spices grow West, since they are general- 
ly known to be produced in the East, because those who 
shall sail westward will always find those places in the 



82 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

west, and they who travel by land eastward, will always 
find those places in the east. The straight lines which 
are drawn lengthwise on the chart show the distance 
from west to east, and those which cross the former 
show the distance from north to south. I have also 
marked down on the chart several places in the Indies 
where ships might put in during a storm or contrary 
winds, or any other unlooked-for accident. Moreover, 
to give you ample information concerning all the places 
of which you desire to know something, you must 
understand that only traders live or reside on these 
islands, and that you will find there as large a number 
of ships and sea-faring people engaged in merchandizing 
as in any other part of the world, particularly in the 
famous port of the city called Zacton, where, every 
year, a hundred large ships carrying pepper, are loaded 
and unloaded, besides many other vessels freighted 
with different kinds of spices. ' This country is an ex- 
ceedingly populous one, and there are many provinces, 
kingdoms, and innumerable cities in it under the rule 
of a sovereign called the Grand Khan, signifying king 
of kings, who generally resides in the province of 
Cathay. His predecessors greatly desired to have the 
commerce and the friendship of Christians, and two 
hundred years ago they sent embassadors to the pope, 
to ask him to send them many learned men and doctors 
to teach them our religion, but on account of some 
obstacles the embassadors met with, they returned 
without coming to Rome. Besides, there came an 

' Zacton, in China, is now called Tsiuenchau. " At this city " says Marco 
Polo, " is the haven of Zayton, frequented by all of the ships from India, 
* * * and by all the merchants of Manzi, for hither is imported the most 
astonishing quantity of goods and of precious stones and pearls. * * * 
For it is one of the two greatest havens in the world for commerce." — Ser 
Marco Polo. Yule. Seconded, vol, ii. p. i86. On Ruysch's mapof 150S, Zaiton 
is placed on the east coast of China, west of the island of Cuba. Vide map. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 83 

embassador to Pope Eugene IV., who informed him of 
the great affection which their princes and people bore 
toward the Christians. I talked with him a long time 
concerning the magnificence of the royal palaces, the 
greatness of the country, the length and breadth of the 
rivers. He told me many wonderful things respecting 
a orreat number of towns and cities built on the banks 
of the rivers, and that there were two hundred cities on 
a single river, with marble bridges over it of great 
length and breadth, and sustained by many pillars. 
This country deserves to be made known as well as any 
other, and there may not only be great profits realized 
and many things of value obtained, but also gold, silver, 
all kinds of precious stones, and spices in abundance, 
which are not brought into our parts. And it is certain 
that many wise men, philosophers, astronomers, and 
other persons skilled in the arts, and very ingenious 
men govern this vast country and command its armies. 
On the chart, from Lisbon directly westward to the 
great and famous city of Quisay, are twenty-six spaces, 
each measuring two hundred and fifty miles. The city 
is one hundred miles, or thirty-five leagues in circuit, 
and within its limits are ten marble bridges. The name 
Ouisay signifies city of heaven. "^ Wonderful things 
are reported of the ingenuity of its inhabitants, its build- 
ings and revenues. The space previously mentioned 
is almost a third part of the circumference of the globe.^ 

* The city is now called Hangchau, and is in the province of Chehkiang. 
As described by Marco Polo, the city was "the finest and the noblest in the 
world." — Ser Marco Polo. Yule. Second ed. vol. ii. p. 145. Quinsai 
on Ruysch's map of 1508, is northwest of Zaiton. 

^ Antonio Pigafetta, in his Treatise on navigation, written about the year 
1523, says : " The circumference of the earth is supposed to be divided into 
three hundred and sixty degrees, and to each degree are assigned seventeen 
leagues and a half ; the circumference of the earth is consequently six thousand 
three hundred leagues. The land league is three miles, the sea league is 
four." — MS. in Ambrosian library, Milan. 



84 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

The city is in the province of Mango, bordering on that 
of Cathay, where the king usually resides. From the 
island Antilla (which you call the Seven Cities, and of 
which you have some knowledge), to the great island 
of Cipango,' are ten spaces, which include two thousand 
five hundred miles, or two hundred and twenty-five 
leagues.^ The Island abounds with gold, pearls, and 
precious stones ; and you should know that they cover 
their temples and palaces with plates of pure gold. All 
these thinofs are hidden and concealed, because the 
way to them is unknown, and yet it may be sailed with 
safety. 

" Much more might be said, but having told you 
that which Is most Important, and as you are learned 
and have good judgment, I am satisfied that you will 
understand what I have written without my adding 
any thing further to these statements. This may sat- 

' Cipango (Japan), now called by the natives Dai Nippon or Dai Nihon, is 
a group of islands lying between the twenty-third and fiftieth parallels of north 
latitude and the one hundred and twenty-second and one hundred and fifty- 
third meridians of east longitude. 

' From Lisbon, Spain, in 38° 42' north latitude and g° 8' west longitude 
(first meridian at Greenwich), to Tokio, Japan, in 35° 40' north latitude and 
139° 40' east longitude, the westward distance is about eleven thousand six 
hundred statute miles ; and from Lisbon to Peking, China, in 39° 56' north 
latitude and 116° 27' east longitude, about twelve thousand one hundred 
miles. From Liverpool, England, to New York, on the sailing route, the dis- 
tance is about three thousand and twenty-three miles, and from New York to 
Canton, China, via the Isthmus of Panama and the Sandwich Islands, the dis- 
tance is about ten thousand six hundred miles. 

" As the old continent, from the western extremity of the Iberian peninsula 
[Portugal], to the coast of China, comprehends almost 130° of longitude, there 
remain about 230° for the distance which Columbus would have had to traverse 
if he wished to reach Cathai (China); but less if he only desired to reach Zipangi 
(Japan). This difference of 230°, which I have indicated, depends on the posi- 
tion of the Portuguese Cape St. Vincent (11° 20' W. of Paris), and the far 
projecting part of the Chinese coast, near the then celebrated port of Quinsay, so 
often named by Columbus and Toscanelli (lat. 30° 28', long. 117° 47' E. of 
Paris). * * * The distance of Cape St. Vincent from Zipangi (Niphon) is 
22° of longitude less than Quinsay, therefore about 209° instead of 230° 53'." 
— Humboldt: Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 264. Note. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 85 

isfy your curiosity, it being as much as my time and 
business permit me now to write. However, I remain 
ever ready to satisfy and serve his highness to the 
utmost in all the commands that he shall lay upon 
me." ^ 

" The admiral, now believing that his opinion was 
excellently well grounded," says Ferdinand Columbus, 
" resolved to be governed by it, and to sail across 
the western ocean in quest of those countries. But 
being aware that such an undertaking was only becom- 
ing a monarch to espouse and to accomplish, he deter- 
mined to propose it to the king of Portugal, because 
he was the latter's subject. And though King John, 
then reigning, gave ear to the admiral's proposals, yet 
he hesitated to accept them on account of the great 
burden and expense attending the exploration and 
conquest of the western coast of Africa, called Guinea. 
Little success had thus far rewarded this undertaking, 
nor had he been able to double the Cape of Good 
Hope, which name, some say, was given it instead of 
Agesingue, its proper designation, because that was 
the farthest they hoped to extend their explorations 
and conquests, or, as others will have it, because this 
cape gave them the expectation of better countries and 
navigation. However, the king had but little inclina- 
tion to invest any more money in discoveries ; and if 
he gave any attention to the admiral, it was in conse- 
quence of the excellent reasons he advanced to support 
his opinion, which arguments so far convinced the king 
that he had nothing else to do but to accept or to 
reject the terms which the admiral proposed. For the 
admiral, being a noble and magnanimous man, wished 
to make an agreement that would be of some personal 

'Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. viii. 



86 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

benefit and honor to himself, so that he would leave 
behind him a notable reputation and a respected family, 
such as became his achievements and memory. For 
this reason the king", by the advice of one Doctor 
Cazadilla,^ whom he greatly esteemed, determined to 
send a caravel secretly to attempt that which the ad- 
miral had proposed to him ; for if those countries were 
in this way discovered, he thought that he would not 
be obliged to bestow any great reward which might be 
demanded. Having quickly equipped a caravel, he 
sent it the way the admiral had proposed to go, for the 
vessel was carrying supplies to the islands of the Cape 
Verd group. But those he sent had not the knowledge, 
perseverance, and energy of the admiral. After wan- 
dering many days on the sea, they turned back to the 
islands of Cape Verd, laughing at the undertaking, and 
saying that it was unreasonable to think there should 
be any land in those waters. This being told to the 
admiral, * * * he determined to go to Castile 
[Spain]. * * * But fearing that, if the king of 
Castile should not favor his undertaking, he would be 
forced to propose it to some other monarch, thereby 
consuming much time, he sent his brother Bartolome 
Columbus, who was with him, to England. =«= * * 
On his way to England, Bartolome happened to fall 
into the hands of pirates, who stripped him and his 
companions. For this reason, and being sick and poor 
in that country, it was a long time before he could 
deliver his message. It was not until he had obtained 
some money by making sea-charts that he began to 
make certain proposals to King Henry VII., then 
reigning, to Avhom he presented a map of the world. 
* * * The king of England, having seen the map 

' Diego Orliz de Cazadilla, bishop of Ceuta, 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 87 

and heard what the admiral offered to do for him, 
readily accepted the overture and ordered him to be 
sent for, * * * 

" I will not now relate how Bartolome Columbus 
conducted himself in England, but will return to the 
admiral, who, about the end of the year 1484, stole se- 
cretly out of Portugal with his son Diego for fear of 
being detained by the king ; for the king having seen 
how unsuited they were whom he had sent with the car- 
avel, was inclined to restore the admiral to his favor, and 
desired that he should renew his proposals ; but the 
kine was not as eag^er to undertake their consideration 
as the admiral was to get away ; therefore the king 
lost that good opportunity and the admiral entered 
Castile to try his fortune which was there to favor him. 
Leaving his son in a monastery, called La Rabida, near 
Palos, he went at once to the court of the catholic 
king, which was then at Cordova, where, being affable 
and an entertaining talker, he made friends of such 
persons as were most favorably inclined to his under- 
taking and fitted to persuade the king to espouse it. 
Among these was Luis de Santangel, an Aragonian 
gentleman, clerk of the allowances in the king's house- 
hold, a man of great prudence and reputation. As the 
undertaking demanded an examination by enlightened 
men, and not meaningless words and favor, their high- 
nesses intrusted the matter to the prior of Prado, after- 
ward archbishop of Granada, and ordered him, to- 
gether with some cosmographers, to make a thorough 
investigation of the project and to report their opinions 
respecting it.' But there was only a small number of 
cosmographers at that time, and those who were called 
together were not as enlightened as they should have 

^ This conclave of the learned men of Spain held its meetings in the 
Dominican convent of St. Stephen, in Salamanca. 



88 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

been, nor would the admiral wholly explain his plans, 
for fear he mieht be served as he had been in 
Portugal and be deprived of his reward. For this 
reason the answers they gave their highnesses were as 
different as their judgments and opinions. Some said 
that inasmuch as no information concerning those 
countries had been obtained by the great number of 
experienced sailors living since the creation, which was 
many thousand years ago, it was not likely that the 
admiral should know more than all the seamen that 
were living or that had lived before that time. Others, 
who were more influenced by cosmographical reasons, 
said the world was so prodigiously great that it 
was incredible that a voyage of three years would carry 
him to the end of the East, where he proposed to go, 
and to substantiate this opinion they brought forward 
the statement of Seneca, who, in one of his works, by 
way of argument, asserts that many wise men disagreed 
about this question, whether or not the ocean were 
boundless, and doubted if it could be traversed ; and 
if it were navigable, whether habitable lands would be 
found on the other side of the globe, and whether they 
could be reached. They added that only a small part 
of this terraqueous globe was inhabited, and that this 
was in our hemisphere, and that all the remainder was 
sea, and only navigable near the coasts and rivers. 

Some admitted that learned men said it was pos- 
sible to sail from the coast of Spain to the farthest 
part of the West. Others argued, as the Portuguese 
had done, about sailing to Guinea, saying that if any 
man should sail directly westward, as the admiral pro- 
posed, that he would not be able to return to Spain on 
account of the roundness of the globe, confidently be- 
lieving that whosoever should go out of the hemisphere 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 89 

known to Ptolemy would go downward, and that then 
it would be impossible to return, affirming that it would 
be like climbing a hill, which ships could not accom- 
plish in the stiffest gale. Although the admiral prop- 
erly answered all these objections, yet the more cogent 
his explanations were the less they comprehended him 
on account of their ignorance, for when a man grows 
familiar with false principles in mathematics for a long 
time he cannot perceive the true, because of the erro- 
neous impressions which were first imprinted on his 
mind. In short, all of these men were governed by 
the Spanish saying, St. Augustine doubts it ; for this 
holy man, in his twenty-first book, chapter ninth, on 
the city of God, asserts and considers that it is un- 
reasonable to believe that there are antipodes, or any 
passage from one hemisphere to another.^ 

^ " But as to the fable that there are antipodes — that is to say, men on the 
opposite side of the earth, where the sun rises when it sets to us — men who 
walk with their feet opposite ours, that is on no ground credible. And, indeed, 
it is not afifirmed that this has been learned by historical knowledge, but by 
. scientific conjecture, on the ground that the earth is suspended within the con- 
cavity of the sky, and that it has as much room on the one side of it as on the 
other ; hence they say that the part which is beneath must be inhabited. But they 
do not remark that, although it be supposed or scientifically demonstrated that 
the world is of a round and spherical form, yet it does not follow that the other 
side of the earth is bare of water ; nor even, though it be bare, does it imme- 
diately follow that it is peopled. For Scripture, which proves the truth of its 
historical statements by the accomplishment of its prophecies, gives no false 
information ; and it is too absurd to say that some men might have taken ship 
and traversed the whole wide ocean, and crossed from this side of the world to 
the other, and that thus even the inhabitants of that distant region are de- 
scended from the first man." — Sancti Aurelii Augustini Hipponensis episcopi 
operum. Tomus Septimus. Antwerpise. 1700. De Civitate Dei. lib. xvi. 
cap. ix. The works of Aurelius Augustine, bishop of Hippo. Trans, by the 
Rev, Marcus Dods. Edinburgh. 1871. 

Lactantius, another theologian, in the fourth century, argued in the same 
way : " Is it possible that men can be so absurd as to believe that the plants and 
trees on the other side of the earth hang downward, and that men there have 
their feet higher than their heads ? If you ask of them how they defend these 
monstrosities, how things do not fall away from the earth on that side, they reply 
that the nature of things is such that heavy bodies tend toward the centre, like 
the spokes of a wheel, while light bodies, as clouds, smoke, fire, tend from the 



90 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" They further opposed the arguments of the ad- 
miral by quoting those current fables respecting the 
five zones, and other fictions, which they believed were 
true. They therefore determined to condemn the en- 
terprise as foolish and impracticable, and to declare 
that it did not become the state and dignity of such 
great sovereigns to be misled by such weak informa- 
tion. Therefore, after much time had been spent in 
considering the project, their highnesses answered the 
admiral that they were then engaged in too many wars 
and conquests, and especially in the conquest of 
Granada, which was then occupying their attention, 
and therefore it was not convenient for them to espouse 
this new enterprise at that time ; nevertheless, another 
opportunity might be given them when they could 
more satisfactorily examine and accomplish that which 
he proposed." ' 

Chagrined as he may have been by this second 
disappointment, Columbus, with that noble enthusiasm 
which the personal consciousness of being in the right 
begets, "determined to apply to the king of France, 
to whom he had already written concerning the 
project, intending, if he were not admitted to an audi- 
ence there, to go to England afterward to search for his 
brother, from whom he had not yet received any intelli- 
gence. With this resolution he set out for the monas- 
tery of La Rabida, to send his son Diego, whom he 
had left there, to Cordova, and then proceed on his 
journey. But in order that the thing which God had 
decreed should come to pass, it was put in the heart of 
Friar Juan Perez, guardian of that house, to befriend the 

centre toward the heavens on all sides. Now I am really at a loss what to say 
of those who, when they have once gone wrong, steadily persevere in their folly 
and defend one absurd opinion by another." — Div. Institutiones. lib. iii. 
' Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xi, xii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 91 

admiral, and to be so captivated with his project that he 
became deeply concerned respecting his resolution and 
the loss Spain would sustain by his departure. There- 
fore he entreated the admiral not tp proceed any far- 
ther, for he would himself go to the queen, hoping 
that, as he was her father-confessor, she would be gov- 
erned by what he should say to her. Although the ad- 
miral was disappointed and disgusted with the discred- 
itable action and judgment of the counsellors of their 
highnesses, yet, being on the other hand very desirous 
that Spain should reap the benefits of his undertaking, 
he complied with the friar's desire and request, for he 
considered himself a Spaniard, as he had long resided 
in Spain prosecuting his undertaking and had begotten 
children there, which was the reason for his rejection of 
the offers made him by other sovereigns, as he declares 
in a letter written to their highnesses [of Spain] in these 
words: "That I might serve your highnesses, I have 
refused to undertake with France, England, and Portu- 
gal ; the letters from the sovereigns of which your 
highnesses may see in the hands of Doctor Villalan." 

" The admiral departed with Friar Juan Perez from 
the monastery of La Rabida, near Palos, and went to 
the camp of Santa Fe, where their catholic majesties 
were carrying on the siege of Granada. The friar then 
had an interview with the queen and so entreated her, 
that she consented that the conferences respecting the 
discovery should be renewed. But the opinions of the 
prior of Prado and those of his followers were dis- 
couraofingf, besides Columbus desired to be made 
admiral and viceroy, and to have other compensations 
deemed too considerable to be granted, because if he 
succeeded in doing what he proposed, they thought 
his demands were too exorbitant, ^nd in case he 



92 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

did not accomplish any thing, they considered it 
foolish to bestow such titles ; consequently the matter 
received no favorable decision. * * * These 
things being of such importance, and their highnesses 
refusing to grant them, the admiral took leave of his 
friends, and proceeded toward Cordova to make prep- 
arations for his journey to France, for he had deter- 
mined not to return to Portugal, although the king had 
written to him. * * * 

" It was in the month of January, in the year 1492, 
when the admiral departed from the camp of Santa Fe. 
On that same day also Luis de Santangel, previously 
mentioned, who did not approve of his going away, 
but was very desirous to prevent it, went to the queen, 
and using such words as his thoughts suggested to 
persuade and enlighten her, said, he was surprised that 
her highness, who had always a great fondness for all 
matters of moment and consequence should now be 
timid in favoring this undertaking, where so little was 
hazarded that might contribute in many ways to the 
glory of God and the propagation of religion. '^ * * 
The queen, knowing the sincerity of Santangel's words, 
answered, thanking him for his good advice and say- 
ing she was willing to accept the proposals upon the 
condition that the undertaking should be delayed until 
she had more leisure after the war, and yet, if he thought 
differently, she was satisfied that as much money as 
was required to fit out a fleet, should be borrowed on 
her jewels. But Santangel, perceiving that the queen 
had condescended upon his advice to do what she had 
refused all other persons, replied that there was no 
need of pawning her jewels, for he would do her high- 
ness that small service by lending his money. There- 
upon the queen at once sent an officer post-haste to 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 93 

bring the admiral back, who found him upon the bridge 
of Pinos, two leagues from Granada. Although the 
admiral was much disheartened by the disappointments 
and delays he had met with in this undertaking, never- 
theless, being informed of the queen's wish and inten- 
tion, he returned to the camp of Santa Fe, where he 
was graciously entertained by their catholic majesties, 
and his commission and stipulations were intrusted to 
their secretary, Juan de Coloma, who, by the command 
of their highnesses, under their hand and seal, granted 
him all the conditions and provisions which, as already 
mentioned, he had demanded, without altering or sub- 
tracting any thing in them."^ 

^ In a letter, addressed to the king and queen describing his fourth voyage, 
Columbus remarks : ' ' For seven years I was at your royal court, where every 
one to whom the enterprise was mentioned treated it as ridiculous, but now 
there is not a man, down to the very tailors, who does not beg to be allowed to 
become a discoverer." — Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos, que hicieron 
per mar los Espanoles desde fines del siglo xv., por Don Martin Fernandez de 
Navarrete. Madrid, 1825. torn. i. p. 311. 

Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap, xiii, xiv, xv. 



CHAPTER IV. 

1492-1493- 

Sensibly impressed with the importance of his 
undertaking, Columbus determined to keep a journal 
of such observations and incidents as were most note- 
worthy during the voyage. Governed by this inten- 
tion, he made the following entry in his log-book, 
when he set sail for the remote shores of Cathay : 

" In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

" Whereas the most Christian, high, excellent, and 
powerful rulers, the king and the queen of Spain and 
of the islands of the sea, our sovereigns, this present 
year, 1492, after your highnesses had ended the war 
with the Moors ruling in Europe, the same having ter- 
minated in the great city of Granada, where, on the 
second day of January, this present year, I saw the 
royal banners of your highnesses planted by force of 
arms upon the towers of the Alhambra, the fortress of 
that city, and beheld the Moorish king come out at the 
gate of the city and kiss the hands of your highnesses 
and of the prince, my sovereign, and in the present 
month, on account of the information which I had given 
your highnesses respecting the countries of India 
and of a sovereign called the Grand Khan, signifying, 
in our language, king of kings ; how, at different times, 
he and his predecessors had sent to Rome soliciting 
instructors to teach him our holy religion, and how the 
holy father had never granted his request, whereby 

94 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 95 

great numbers of people were lost, believing in idola- 
try and doctrines of perdition ; therefore your high- 
nesses, as catholic Christians and sovereigns, who love 
and promote the holy Christian religion, and are ene- 
mies of the sect of Mahomet, and of all idolatry and 
heresy, determined to send me, Christopher Columbus, 
(Cristobal Colon,) to the previously mentioned coun- 
tries of India, to see the said sovereigns, people, and 
territories, and to learn their disposition and the proper 
way of converting them to our holy religion ; and fur- 
thermore, directed that I should not go by land to the 
East, as is customary, but by a westerly route, in which 
direction we have hitherto no certain evidence that any 
one has gone. Therefore, after having expelled the Jews 
from your dominions, your highnesses, in the same 
month of January, ordered me to proceed with a suffi- 
cient armament to the said regions of India, and for 
that purpose granted me great favors and ennobled me, 
that thereafter I might call myself Don and be high 
admiral [almirante mayor) of the sea, and perpetual 
viceroy and governor of all the islands and continent 
which I might discover and acquire, or which may 
hereafter be discovered and acquired in the ocean ; 
and that this title should be inherited by my eld- 
est son, and thus descend from generation to gen- 
eration forever. Thereupon I left the city of Gra- 
nada, on Saturday, the twelfth day of May, 1492, 
and proceeded to Palos, a seaport, where I armed 
three vessels very fit for such an expedition, and 
having provided myself with an abundance of 
stores and seamen, I set sail from this port on 
Friday, the third of August, half an hour before 
sunrise, and steered for the Canary Islands of your 
highnesses, which are in the said ocean, thence to take 



96 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

my departure and proceed till I arrived at the Indies, 
and perform the embassy of your highnesses to the 
sovereio-ns there, and discharof-e the orders eiven. 
Consequently, I have determined to write out daily a 
minute account of the voyage respecting what I do and 
see, and the passage, as hereafter will appear. More- 
over, sovereign princes, besides recording each night 
my progress during the day and the run made during 
the night, I intend to make a new nautical chart (carta 
nueva de navegar), in which I shall delineate all the sea 
and the lands of the Ocean in their proper places under 
their wind ; and, moreover, I shall compose a book and 
represent the whole like a picture by latitude, from the 
equator, and by longitude, from the West, wherefore it 
will cause me to abstain from sleep and to make many 
experiments in navigation, for these things will require 
no little labor." ' 

The vessels of the fleet were the ship {la nao), Santa 
Maria,'' commanded by Columbus, and two caravels, 
{carabelas,) La Pinta, commanded by Martin Alonso 
Pinzon, and La Nina, by Vicente Yanes Pinzon, his 
brother, both being natives and seamen of Palos. 
"Being furnished with all necessaries and ninety men," ^ 
says Ferdinand Columbus, " they set sail on the third of 

' " Tengo propdsito de hacer carta nueva de navcgar, en la cual situard ioda 
la mar y tierras del mar Oceano en sus propios lugares dehajo su viento; y mas 
componer tin libra, y poner todo por el semejante por pintura, par latiiiid del equi- 
nocial y longitud del Occidente, y sobre todo cuinple miicho que yo olvide el suerio y 
tiente mucho el navegar porque asi cumple, las cuales serdn gran irabajo." — 
Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. torn. i. pp. 1-3. 

* Columbus, speaking of the progress of the ship, on the twenty-fourth of 
October, remarks : " I carried all the sail of the ship, the mainsail, and two 
bonnets, the foresail, and the spritsail, and the mizzen and the main-top-sail. 
Llevaba todas mis velas de la nao, macstra, y dos bonetas, y trinquete, y cebadera, 
y mezana, y vela de gavia." A bonnet was a sail placed beneath the mainsail 
in fine weather to increase the speed of a ship. 

'On the pavement of the cathedral of Seville is inscribed: '' Con ires 
galeras y ()o personas," with three galleys and ninety persons. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 97 

August directly toward the Canaries, and from that time 
forward the admiral was very careful to keep an accurate 
journal of all that happened to him during the voyage, 
specifying the wind that blew, how far he sailed with 
it, the currents he found, and what he saw by the way, 
whether birds or fishes, or other things. * * * 

" The next day after the admiral's departure for the 
Canary Islands, it being Saturday, the fourth of August, 
the rudder of one of the caravels, of the one called La 
Pinta, broke loose, and the caravel being compelled to 
lie to, the admiral soon reached her side, but the wind 
blowing hard he could render no assitance,as command- 
ers at sea are obliofed to do to encourao^e those that are 
in distress. This he did more promptly, as he conceived 
that the unshipping of the rudder had been brought 
about by the contrivance of the master to avoid going 
on the voyage, as he had attempted to do before they 
set sail." ' 

At the Canary Islands, Columbus altered the sails 
of the caravel La Nina, and made a new rudder for the 
Pinta. On Thursday morning, the sixth of September, 
the three vessels set sail from the island Gomera, of 
the Canary group, " and stood away to the west." On 
the following Sunday, at day-break, when the fleet was 
nine leagues west of the island of Ferro,^ the sailors 
" lost sight of land, and many, fearing that it would be 
long before they should see it again, sighed and wept, 
but the admiral, after comforting them with large prom- 
ises of land and of wealth, to raise their hopes and 
lessen their fears respecting the length of the voyage, 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xvi, xvii. 

' The island of Ferro is the most westerly of the Canary group. The Cana- 
ries lie off the west coast of Africa, between 27° and 30° north latitude and 13° 
and 19° west longitude. The principal islands are : Tenerifife, Grand Canary, 
Palma, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gomera, and Ferro. Through the last island 
the ancient geographers drew the first meridian of longitude. 



98 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

pretended that by his computation they had sailed only 
fifteen leagues that day when they had really run 
eighteen, he having determined to keep, during the voy- 
age, his reckoning short, in order that the men might 
not think that they were so far from Spain as they 
were, should he openly set down the progress made 
which he privately recorded.' 

'• Continuing his voyage in this way, on Wednes- 
day, the twelfth of September, about sun-setting, 
being about one hundred and fifty leagues west of the 
island of Ferro, he discovered a large piece of the 
trunk of a tree of one hundred and twenty tons, which 
seemed to have been a long time in the water. There 
and somewhat farther the current set strongly toward 
the northeast. When he had run fifty leagues farther 
westward, on the thirteenth of September he found 
at night-fall that the needle varied half a point toward 
the northeast, and, at day-break, half a point more, by 
which he understood that the needle did not point at 
the north star, but at some other fixed and visible 
point. This variation no man had observed before, 
and therefore he had occasion to be surprised at it ; but 
he was more amazed on the third day after this, when 
he was almost one hundred leagues farther, for at night 
the needles varied about a point to the northeast, and 
in the morning they pointed upon the star." '^ 

' According to Columbus's statement, 56| miles were equal to a degree, and 
four miles to a marine league. It has been assumed that the Italian mile used 
in measurements by Columbus equalled 4,842 English feet, and the Italian 
marine league 19,368 English feet. — Vide An attempt to solve the problem of 
the first landing-place of Columbus in the New World. By Captain G. V. Fox, 
Assistant Secretary of the United States Navy. United States Coast and 
Geodetic Survey. Appendix No. 18. Report for 1880. Washington, 1882. 

pp. 58. 59- 

' " On September 13, 1492, he had reached far enough to the westward to 
come from a previously eastern declination within a region of westerly declina- 
tion, and that on September 17 it amounted to a whole point (ii^°). This 
constitutes his well-known discovery of a part of a line of no-declination. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 99 

As they sailed on this westward course, they found 
" more weeds than they had hitherto toward the north 
as far as they could see, which weeds were sometimes 
a solace to them, believing that they might come from 
some land that was near, and sometimes they caused 
dread, because they were so thick that in some measure 
they impeded the ships, and fear making things worse 
than they are, they apprehended that that might hap- 
pen to them which is fictitiously reported of Saint Amaro 
in the Frozen Sea, which it is said does not suffer ships 
to stir backward or forward, and therefore they steered 
away from the shoals of weeds as far as possible.* 

" Two hundred and twenty-four leagues or, near enough for our purpose, 
G72 nautical miles, west of the island of Gomera would place him on September 
13, in latitude 28° 06' north, and in longitude 12° 42' + 17° 08' = 29° 50', ac- 
cording to Bowditch, or if we take the position of the harbor of Sebastian near 
the eastern point of Gomera Island, according to admiralty chart No. 1873, 
viz. : latitude 28° 05' 5 and longitude 17° 06' 3 and considering that 11° 12' 
correspond to 12° 42' of difference of longitude in that latitude, we have for 
a point in the line of no-declination the latitude of 28° 05' and lonf^itude 
29° 48'. In E. Walker's treatise on Terrestrial and Cosmical Magnetism, 
Cambridge (England), 1866, p. 300, we read: ' The history of this line dates 
from the 13th of September, 1492, when Columbus observed the needle pass 
from the east to the west of the meridian, in latitude 28° N. longitude 28° W. 
(probably roughly adding 11° of difference of longitude to 17° for longitude of 
Gomera). According to my computation of the daily position of the Admiral's 
flagship, and based upon his log-book, he was on September 13 in latitude 
28° 21' longitude 29° 16'. * * * According to my computation of the 
daily track, Columbus was on September 17, 1492, in latitude 27° 38' and in 
longitude 36° 30', when he noted 11° west declination." — An inquiry into the 
variation of the compass off the Bahama Islands, at the time of the landfall of 
Columbus in 1492. By Charles A Schott. United States Coast and Geodetic 
Survey. Appendix No. 19. Report for 1880. Washington, 1882. p. 5. 

" Christopher Columbus has not only the merit of being the first to discover 
a line without magnetic variation, but also of having excited a taste for the study 
of terrestrial magnetism in Europe, by means of his observations on the progres- 
sive increase of western declination in receding from that line." — Humboldt: 
Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 656. 

' " Men also became acquainted with those great banks of sea-weed {Fuctis 
natans), — the oceanic meadows which presented the singular spectacle of the 
accumulation of a social plant over an extent of space almost seven times greater 
than the area of France. T\\& great Fitctis Bank, the Marde Sargasso, extends 
between 19° and 34° north latitude. The major axis is situated about 7° west 



100 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" The wind at this time blew at southwest, some- 
times more and sometimes less west, which, though 
contrary to their voyage, the admiral said he considered 
a very good wind and a help to them, because the men, 
continually grumbling, said that among the things 
which increased their fears this was one, for the wind 
being always astern, they should never have a gale in 
those seas to carry them back ; and though sometimes 
they found the contrary, they alleged that it was no 
settled wind, and that not being strong enough to swell 
the sea, it would never carry them back as far as they 
had to sail. Although the admiral did whatever he 
could to make them cheerful, telling them that the land 
being now so near did not permit the waves to rise, 
and using the best argument he could, nevertheless he 
affirms that he stood in need of God's special help, as 
Moses did when he led the Israelites out of Egypt, 
who forbore laying violent hands upon him, because of 
the wonders God wrought through him. The admiral 
said that he was similarly protected in this voyage. On 
the following Sunday the wind began to blow from the 
west-northwest, with a rolling sea as the men wished, 
and three hours before noon they saw a turtle-dove fly 
over the ship, and in the evening they saw a pelican, a 
river fowl, and other wild birds, and some crabs among 
the weeds ; and the next day they espied another peli- 
can, and several small birds which came from the 
west, and small fishes, some of which the men of the 
other vessels stuck with harpoons, because they would 
not bite at the hook." ' 

" As often as the men were deceived by these signs 

of the island of Corvo. The lesser Fucus Bank lies in a space between the 
Bermudas and the Bahamas. Winds and partial currents variously affect, ac- 
cording to the character of the season, the length and circumference of these 
Atlantic fucoid meadows." — Humboldt: Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 663. 
' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xviii, xlx. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. loi 

of land, so often had they occasion to be suspicious 
and to grumble and conspire together. They said the 
admiral, for a foolish whim, intended to make him- 
self a great lord at the hazard of their lives, and since 
they had done their duty in trying their fortune, and had 
gone farther from land and any succor than others had 
done, that they ought not to destroy themselves, nor 
proceed farther on the voyage, because if they did, 
they should have reason to repent, for their provisions 
would fall short and the sails of the ships would not 
last, which they knew were already so impaired that it 
would be difficult to retrace their course from where 
they were ; and that none would condemn them for 
returning, but that they would be regarded as very 
brave men for going upon such an expedition and ven- 
turing so far, and that the admiral being a foreigner, 
and having nothing at stake, and as many wise and 
learned men had condemned his opinion, there would 
be nobody now to favor and defend him, and that they 
should get more credit than he if they accused him of 
ignorance and mismanagement, whatever he should 
say for himself. And there were some who said that 
to end all dispute, in case he would not consent to 
return, that they could make short work of it and throw 
him overboard, and report that while he was making 
his observations he fell into the sea, and that no man 
would trouble himself to inquire into the truth of the 
matter ; which deed would hasten their return home 
and preserve their lives. Thus they conducted them- 
selves from day to day, grumbling, complaining, and 
conspiring together. The admiral was not without ap- 
prehensions of their inconstancy and evil intentions 
toward him. Therefore, sometimes with fair words 
and sometimes with a strong determination to expose 



I02 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

his life, putting them in mind of the punishment due 
them if they hindered the voyage, he, in some measure, 
quelled their fears and suppressed their evil designs. 
To confirm the hope with which he had inspired them, 
he reminded them of the previous signs and indica- 
tions, assuring them that they would soon find land, 
which they were so eager to see that they thought 
every hour a year until they beheld it. * * * 

"On Sunday morning [the thirtieth of Septem- 
ber], four rush-tails came to the ship, and as they flew 
there together, it was thought that land was near, es- 
pecially when, not long afterward, four pelicans flew 
by, and an abundance of weeds was seen, lying in a 
line west-northwest and east-southeast, and also a 
great number of those fishes they call emperadores, 
which have a very hard skin and are not fit to eat. 
However much the admiral regarded these signs, still 
he never forgot those in the heavens and the course of 
the stars. He therefore observed in this place, to his 
great astonishment, that the stars of Charles's wain, at 
night, appeared in the west, and in the morning they 
were directly northeast, from which he inferred that 
their whole night's course was but three lines or nine 
hours — that is, so many parts of twenty-four, — and this 
he did every night. He also perceived that at night- 
fall the compass-needle varied a whole point to the 
northwest, and at day-break it came right with the star. 
These things confounded the pilots until he told them 
that the cause of it was the circuit the star took about 
the pole, which was some satisfaction to them, for this 
variation made them apprehend some danger at such 
an unknown distance from home, and in such strange 
regions. * * * 

" On Monday, the first of October, at sunrise, a 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 103 

pelican came to the ship, and two more about ten in the 
morning, and long beds of weeds extended from east 
to west. That day, in the morning, the pilot of the 
admiral's ship said that they were five hundred and 
seventy-eight leagues west of the island of Ferro. The 
admiral said, by his reckoning, they were five hundred 
and eighty-four leagues ; but in secret he concluded it 
was seven hundred and seven, which is one hundred 
and twenty-nine leagues more than the pilot reckoned. 
The other two vessels differed much in their computa- 
tions, for the pilot of the caravel Nina, on the following 
Wednesday afternoon, said they had sailed five hun- 
dred and forty leagues, and the other of the caravel 
Pinta said six hundred and thirty-four. * * * 

" On Thursday afternoon, the fourth of October, a 
flock of more than forty sparrows and two pelicans flew 
so near the ship that a seaman killed one of them with 
a stone ; and before this they had seen another bird 
like a rush-tail, and another like a swallow, and a great 
many flying-fish fell into the vessels. The next day 
there came a rush-tail and a pelican from the west, and 
great numbers of sparrows were seen. 

" On Sunday, the seventh of October, about sun- 
rise, some signs of land appeared westward, but being 
undefined, no one said any thing, for fear of the con- 
sequence of asserting what did not exist, and also for 
fear of losing the thirty crowns which their catholic 
majesties had promised as an annuity during the life 
of him who should first discover land. In order to 
prevent the men from crying land, land, at every turn, 
as they would likely have done without cause to secure 
the gift, it was ordered that whoever said he saw land, 
if it were not ascertained to exist in three days from 
that time, should lose the reward, even if afterward he 



104 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

should be declared to be the first discoverer of land. 
All on board of the admiral's ship being thus fore- 
warned, none dared to cry out land, but those in the 
caravel Nina, which was a better sailer, and kept 
ahead, once believing that they actually saw land, fired 
a gun, and displayed their colors to indicate land. But 
the farther they sailed the more their joyous expecta- 
tions diminished and the indication of land disappeared. 
However, it pleased God to give them soon after some 
comforting assurances, for they saw great fiocks of large 
fowl and others of small birds flying from the west 
toward the southwest. Therefore, the admiral, being 
now so far from Spain, and sure that such small birds 
would not go far from land, altered his course, which 
until that time had been westward, and stood to the 
southwest, saying, that his reason for changing his 
course was that he would deviate but a little from his 
first intention and that he would be following the 
example of the Portuguese, who had discovered the 
greater number of their islands by means of such birds, 
and more especially as the birds he saw flew generally 
in the same direction. He also had always proposed 
to himself to find land according to the place they were 
in ; since, as they well knew, he had often told them 
that he never expected to find land until he was seven 
hundred and fifty leagues westward of the Canary 
Islands, within which distance, he had further said, he 
should discover Espanola, which, at this time, he 
called Cipango. =i= * * 

" On Monday, the eighth of October, there came 
to the ship twelve singing-birds of several colors, and 
after flying about the vessel, they held on their way. 
They also saw from the vessels many other birds flying 
toward the southwest, and that same night great 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 105 

numbers of large fowls were seen, and flocks of small 
birds coming- from the north, and flying after the others. 
Besides they saw a good number of tunny-fish. In the 
morning they saw a jay, a pelican, some ducks, and 
small birds, flying the same way as the others had 
done, and they perceived that the air was fresh and 
odoriferous, as it is at Seville in April. But they 
were now so eager to see land, that they had no faith 
in any signs ; so that, on Wednesday, the tenth of 
October, although they saw a great many birds pass 
by during the day and at night, the men did not cease 
to complain, or the admiral to censure them for their 
want of confidence, declaring to them, that right or 
wrong they must go farther to discover the Indies 
for which purpose their catholic majesties had sent 
them. 

" The admiral being no longer able to withstand 
the number that opposed him, it pleased God that on 
Thursday afternoon, the eleventh of October, the men 
took heart and rejoiced, because they had unquestion- 
able signs that they were near land. Those on board 
the admiral's ship saw a green rush float by the ship, 
and then a large green fish of that class which go not 
far from the rocks. Those on board the caravel Pinta 
saw a cane and a staff, and picked up another staff 
curiously wrought, and a small board, and an abundance 
of fresh weeds washed from the shore. Those in the 
caravel Nina saw similar things, and a branch of a 
thorn full of red berries, which seemed to be recently 
broken off". By these signs and by his own conscious- 
ness, the admiral, being assured that he was near land, 
made a speech to all the men in the evening, after 
prayers, reminding them how merciful God had been 
in bringing them on so long a voyage with such fair 



io6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

weather, and comforting them with indications which 
every day were plainer and plainer. He begged them to 
be very watchful that night, for they were aware that in 
the first article of the instructions he had given each ship 
at the Canary Islands, that he had ordered that when 
they had sailed seven hundred leagues to the west, 
without discovering land, that they should lie to from 
midnight until daylight. Therefore, since they had not 
yet obtained their desires in discovering land, they 
should at least manifest their zeal by being watchful. 
And inasmuch as he had the strongest assurances of 
finding land that night, each should watch in his place ; 
for besides the annuity of thirty crowns which their 
highnesses had promised for a life-time to the one that 
first saw land, to the same person he would give a 
velvet doublet. 

" After this, about ten at night, as the admiral was 
in the great cabin, he saw a light on shore, but said it 
was so obscure that he could not affirm it to be land, 
though he called Pedro Gutierrez, and bid him observe 
whether he saw the light, who said he did. Shortly 
afterward they called Rodrigo Sanchez, of Segovia, to 
look that way, but he could not see it, because he did 
not come in time to the place where it might have 
been seen. They did not see it more than once or 
twice, which induced them to think that it mio-ht have 
been a candle or a torch belonging to some fisherman 
or traveller, who lifted it up and down ; or, perhaps, 
that it was in the hands of people going from one 
house to another, as the light vanished and suddenly 
appeared again. * * * Being now very watchful, 
they still held on their course, until about two in the 
morning, when the caravel Pinta, which, being an ex- 
cellent sailer, was far ahead, gave the signal of land, 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 107 

which was first discovered by a sailor named Rodrigo 
de Triana, when two leagues from the shore. But the 
annuity of thirty crowns was not given to him by their 
catholic majesties, but to the admiral, who had seen the 
light in the darkness, signifying the spiritual light that he 
was then spreading in those dark regions. Being now 
near land, all the ships lay to, those on board thinking 
it was a long time until morning, when they might see 
what they had so long desired."^ 

This island, says Bartolome de las Casas, the 
Spanish historian,^ was " one of the Lucayos, called by 
the Indians Guanahani. ^ Presently they descried 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xx, xxii. 

The discovery of land was made on Friday morning, the twelfth of Octo- 
ber, old style. According to the calendar of Julius Csesar, every fourth year had 
three hundred and sixty-six days ; the others three hundred and sixty-five. Pope 
Gregory XIII. changed this method of reckoning time by dropping ten days in 
October, 1582, in order to bring back the day of the vernal equinox to the same 
day, in the year 325, in which the council of Nice was convened. By an act 
of the parliament of Great Britain, in 1751, eleven days, in September, 1752, 
were dropped, and the third day of the month was reckoned the fourteenth of 
the new style. This mode of reckoning time is called the itew style. 

* Bartolome de las Casas was born at Seville, in 1474. In 1502 he made 
his first voyage to the New World, and quitted its shores for the last time in 
1547. His history of the Indies, — Historia general de las Indias, — written 
between the years 1527 and 1562, was not printed until 1875—76, when it was 
issued, in five volumes, at Madrid. Before his death, in 1566, he gave the 
manuscript of this work to the convent of San Gregorio, at Valladolid, with the 
request that it should not be published for forty years. A manuscript in Las 
Casas's hand-writing, apparently an abridgment of Columbus's journal of his 
first voyage, which the former evidently had made while obtaining material for 
his history of the Indies, was found by Martin Fernandez de Navarrete, the 
Spanish historian, in the archives of Spain, when making, about the year 1790, 
researches for information respecting the marine history of Spain. 

^ This island is believed by Munoz to be Watling Island ; by Navarrete, 
Grand Turk Island ; by Humboldt and Irving, Cat Island. The Bahamas lie 
between the island of Hayti or San Domingo and the east coast of Florida, or 
between 21° and 27° 30' north latitude and 70° 30' and 79° 5' west longitude. 
The principal islands of the group are the Grand Bahama, Great and Little 
Abaco, Andros, New Providence, San Salvador, Rum Cay, Great Exuma, Wat- 
ling, Long, Crooked, Atwood's Key, Great and Little Magna islands. 

The identity of the island is discussed at some length by Captain G. V. 
Fox, of the United States Navy, who remarks : " The study that I gave to the 



io8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

people, naked, and the admiral landed in the boat, 
which was armed, along with Martin Alonso Pinzon 
and Vicente Yafiez, his brother, captain of the Nina. 
The admiral bore the royal standard, and the two cap- 
tains each a banner of the green cross, which all the 
vessels had carried. The banner was emblazoned with 
the initials of the names of the king and queen ' on 
each side of the cross, with a crown over each letter. 
When they came on the beach, they saw trees very 
green, an abundance of water, and fruit of differ- 
ent kinds. The admiral called the two captains and 
the other men who had come on land, and Rodrigo de 
Escovedo, notary of the fleet, and Rodrigo Sanchez de 
Segovia, and said that he had summoned them to 'bear 
witness that he, before all other men, took possession 
(as in act he did) of that island for the king and the 
queen, his sovereigns, making the requisite declarations 
which are more at lar£;"e set down in the instrument 
which they made there in writing." 

The natives who collected around the Spaniards at 
their landing are thus described by Columbus : " I per- 
ceived that if they should have much friendship for us 
that it was a people that could be emancipated and con- 
verted to our holy religion better by love than by force. 
I gave a number of them some red caps and some beads 
of glass, which they placed around their necks, and 
many other things of little value, with which they were 

subject in the winter of 1878-79 in the Bahamas, which had been familiar 
cruising-ground to me, has resulted in the selection of Samana or Atwood Cay 
for the first landing-place. It is a little island, 8.8 miles east and west, 1.6 
extreme breadth, and averaging 1.2 north and south. It has 8.6 square miles. 
The east end is in latitude 23° 05' N.; longitude, 73° 37' west of Green- 
wich. * * * Turk is smaller than Samana, and Cat very much longer." — 
An attempt to solve the problem of the first landing-place of Columbus in the 
New World. By Captain G. V. Fox, United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. 
Appendix No. 18. Report for iSSo. Washington, 1882. pp. 43, 44. 
' F and Y : Fernando and Ysabel. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 109 

much pleased, and they became so friendly that their 
attachment seemed strange to us. Afterward they 
came swimming to the boats of the ships, where we 
were, bringing parrots and thread of cotton in hanks, 
javelins, and many other things, which they exchanged 
for other articles we gave them, such as glass beads 
and little bells. Finally they took every thing and 
gave whatever they had with good- will. But to me 
they seemed to be a very poor people. They were 
all naked, just as they were born, and even the women, 
although I did not see but one young girl. All the 
rest I saw were youths, but none more than thirty 
years of age ; very well made, of good shape, and very 
attractive faces ; their hair coarse as that of the tail of 
a horse, and short, brought over the forehead to the 
eyebrows, except a little on the back of the head, 
which is longer and never cut. Some paint themselves 
black, for they are of the color of those of the Canary 
Islands — neither black nor white ; others paint them- 
selves white or red, or with any color they find. Some 
paint their faces, and some their bodies ; others only 
their eyes or their noses. They carry no weapons and 
they have no knowledge of them ; for when I showed 
them swords they took them by the edge and they cut 
themselves through ignorance. They have no iron. 
Their javelins are rods without iron, and some of these 
have at the end a fish-tooth, and others have other 
things. All of them, as a class, are of a commanding 
stature, and are good-looking, well formed. I saw 
some marks of wounds on their bodies, and I asked by 
signs what had caused them. They answered me in 
the same way, that people came from the other islands 
thereabout to capture them, and they defended them- 
selves. I thouc^ht then, and still believe, that those 



no DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

people came from the continent, {tien^a Jirmey) to take 
them prisoners. They ought to be good servants and 
very capable, because I perceived that they repeated 
very readily all that I told them, and I believe that 
they would easily become Christians, for they seemed 
to me as if they had no religion. If pleasing to our Lord, 
I shall carry from this place, at the time of my departure, 
six of them to your highnesses, in order that they may 
learn to talk in our language. I did not see any animals 
of any kind on the island, except parrots. * * * 
" Soon after day-break [on Saturday, the thirteenth 
of October,] many of these people came to the beach, as 
I have said, all youths and of good stature, a very 
handsome people ; their hair not curled, but straight 
and coarse, like horse-hair, and all with faces and heads 
much broader than any other race that I have seen ; 
their eyes very beautiful and not small ; they were 
not black, but the color of those of the Canaries, 
nor ought it to be expected otherwise, for it is 
east-west i^Lesteoueste) with the island Ferro of the 
Canary group, on the same parallel.' * * * They 
came to the ship in canoes, log-boats, made of the 
trunks of trees, all of one piece, and fashioned in a 
wonderful manner, considering the country. In some 
of the large ones were as many as forty of forty-five 
men, and in others that were smaller there was only 
one person. They rowed with an oar resembling the 
wooden shovel used by bakers, and went wonderfully 
fast, and if the canoe upset, all swam and set it right 
again, bailing it out with calabashes which they carried 
with them. They brought balls of spun cotton, and 
parrots, and javelins, and other things which it would be 
tedious to describe, and which they parted with for 

'The real position of this island, in respect to that of Ferro, is E. 5° N. 
The port of Ferro is in latitude 27° 46' 2" N. and longitude 17° 54' 2" W. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. iii 

any thing that was given them. And I was inquisitive 
and endeavored to ascertain if they had gold, and I 
saw some who wore small pieces hanging from holes 
in their noses, and I learned by signs that, by going to 
the south, or by going around the island to the south, 
I would find a king who had large vessels made of 
gold, and great quantities of the precious metal." ' 

Columbus describing this island, which he named 
San Salvador (the Holy Saviour), under whose protec- 
tion he had made the discovery, continues : " This is 
a large and level island, with extremely flourishing 
trees, and streams of water. There is a large lake in 
the middle of the island, but no mountains. It is 
entirely covered with verdure and it is delightful to 
behold. The natives are an inoffensive people, and so 
desirous to possess any thing they saw with us that 
they kept swimming off to the ships with whatever they 
could find, and readily bartered for any article we saw 
fit to give them in return, even such things as broken 
platters and pieces of glass. I saw in this manner six- 
teen balls of cotton thread, which weighed about 
twenty-five pounds, exchanged for three Portuguese 
ceutis.'' This traffic I forbade, and permitted no one 
to take their cotton from them, unless I should order it 
to be procured for your highnesses, if sufficient quan- 
tities could be obtained. It grows on this island, but 
from my short stay here I could not inform myself 
fully respecting it. The gold they wear in their noses 
is also found here. But not to lose time, I am deter- 
mined to proceed and ascertain whether I can reach 
Cipango (Japan). * * * 

^ Vide Personal narrative of the first voyage of Columbus to America. 
From a manuscript recently discovered in Spain. Translated from the Spanish. 
[By Samuel KettelL] Boston, 1827. pp. 33-38. 

Historia general de las Indias. Por Bartolome de las Casas. lib. I. 
cap. xxxix-xli. Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrele. tom. I. 

'A coin of less value than a mill. 



112 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" In the morning, [Sunday, the fourteenth of Octo- 
ber,] I ordered the boats to be manned and furnished, 
and coasted along the island toward the north-north- 
east, to examine that part of it, for we had landed first 
on the eastern part. We soon discovered two 
or three villages, and the people all came down to 
the shore, calling to us, and giving thanks to 
God. Some brought us water, and others food. 
Others seeing that I was not disposed to land plunged 
into the sea and swam to us, and we observed 
that they interrogated us to know if we had come from 
heaven. An old man came on board my boat. The 
others, both men and women, cried with loud voices : 
* Come and see the men who have come from heaven ! 
Bring them food and drink ! ' Thereupon many of 
both sexes came to the beach, every one bringing 
something, giving thanks to God, prostrating them- 
selves on the ground, and lifting their hands to heaven. 
They called to us loudly to come on land, but I was 
apprehensive on account of a reef of rocks, which, 
except where there is a narrow entrance, surrounds the 
whole island, although within there is depth of water 
and space sufficient for all the ships of Christen- 
dom. * * * 

" After I had taken a survey of these' parts, I 
returned to the ship. Setting sail, I discovered so 
many islands that I knew not which to visit first. 
The natives whom I had taken on board informed 
me by signs that there were so many of' them that 
they could not be numbered. They repeated the 
names of more than a hundred. I determined to 
steer for the largest, which is about five leagues from 
San Salvador ; the others were at a greater or less 
distance from this island. * * * 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 113 

" We stood off and on during the night [of 
Monday, the fifteenth of October], determining not to 
come to anchor till morning, fearing to meet with shoals. 
We continued our course in the morning, and as the 
island was found to be six or seven leagues distant, 
and the tide was against us, it was noon before we 
arrived there. I found that part of it, toward San 
Salvador, extending from north to south to be five 
leagues, and the other side, along which we coasted, 
running from east to west, to be more than ten leagues. 
From this island, espying a still larger one to the 
west, I set sail in that direction and kept on till night 
without reaching the western extremity of the island, 
where I eave it the name of Santa Maria de la 
Concepcion. * * * j j-^q^ g^^- g^jj fQj. another 
laree island to the west. * * * This island is 
nine leagues distant from Santa Maria, in a westerly 
direction. This part of it extends from northwest 
to southeast, and it appears to be twenty-eight leagues 
long, very level, without any mountains, as were San 
Salvador and Santa Maria, having a good shore which 
was not rocky, except a few ledges under the water, 
where it is necessary to anchor at some distance out, 
although the water is clear and the bottom can be 
seen. * * * " This island he called Fernandina, 
in honor of the king of Spain. 

On Friday, the nineteenth of October, he descried 
an island, " toward which," he remarks, " we directed 
our course, and before noon all three of the vessels 
arrived at the northern extremity, where a rocky islet 
and reef extend toward the north, with another be- 
tween them and the main island. The Indians on 
board the ships called this island Saomete. I named 
it Isabela [in honor of the queen]. It lies westerly 



114 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

from the island of Fernandina, and the coast extends 
from the islet twelve leagues west to a cape I called 
Cabo Hermoso, for it was a beautiful, round headland, 
with a bold shore free from shoals. Part of the shore 
is rocky, but the remainder of it, like most of the coast 
here, a sandy beach. * * * This island is the 
most beautiful that I have yet seen, the trees in great 
numbers, flourishinsf and tall ; the land is higher than 
the other islands, and exhibits an eminence, which, 
though it cannot be called a mountain, yet it adds a 
charm to the appearance of the island, and indicates 
the existence of streams of water in the interior. 
From this part toward the northeast is an extensive 
bay, with many large and dense groves. * ♦ * j 
am not solicitous to examine particularly every thing 
here, which, indeed, could not be done in fifty years, 
for it is my desire to make all possible discoveries, and 
return to your highnesses, if it please our Lord, in 
April. However, should I meet with gold or spices in 
great quantity, I shall remain till I collect as much as 
possible, and for this purpose I am only proceeding in 
search of them." * * * 

Under the date of Sunday, the twenty-first of 
October, while at anchor off the island of Isabela, 
Columbus writes : " I shall depart immediately, if the ' 
weather serve, and sail round the island till I succeed 
in meeting with the king, in order to see if I can 
acquire any of the. gold which, I hear, he possesses. 
Afterward I shall set sail for another very large island, 
which I believe to be Cipango, according to the signs 
I receive from the Indians on board. They call the 
island Colba [Cuba], and say there are many large 
ships and sailors there. Another island they call 
Bosio, and inform me that it is very large. The others 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 115 

that are on the course I shall examine on the way, and 
accordingly as I find gold or spices in abundance, I 
shall determine what to do. Nevertheless, I am 
determined to proceed to the continent, and visit 
the city of Guisay [the city of heaven, the residence 
of the Grand Khan], where I shall deliver the letters of 
your highnesses to the Grand Khan, and demand an 
answer, with which I shall return. * * * 

" Tuesday, the "twenty-third of October. * * * 
It is now my determination to depart for the island of 
Cuba, which I believe to be Cipango from the accounts 
I have received here of the great number and riches of 
the people. I have abandoned the intention of staying 
here and sailing round the island in search of the 
king, as it would be a waste of time, and I perceive 
there are no gold mines to be found. * * * And 
as we are going to places where there is great com- 
merce, I judge it inexpedient to linger on the way, but 
to proceed and survey the countries we meet with, till 
we arrive at that one most favorable for our business. 
It is my opinion that we shall find much profit there in 
spices, but my want of knowledge in these articles 
occasions me extreme regret, inasmuch as I see a 
thousand kinds of trees, each kind with its particular 
fruit, and as flourishing at this time as the fields in 
Spain during the months of May and June. Likewise 
a thousand kinds of herbs and flowers, of the proper- 
ties of which I remain in ignorance, with the exception 
of the aloe, which I have directed to-day to be taken 
on board in large quantities for the use of your high- 
nesses. * * * 

" Wednesday, the twenty-fourth of October. * 
* * At midnight weighed anchor and set sail from 
Cabo del Isles of the island of Isabela, being in the 



ii6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

north part, where I had remained preparing to depart 
for the island of Cuba, in which place the Indians tell 
me I shall find great commerce, with abundance of gold 
and spices, and large ships, and merchants. They 
direct me to steer toward the west-southwest, which is 
the course I am holdinsf. If the accounts which the 
natives of the islands and those on board the ships 
have communicated to me by signs (for their language 
I do not understand) are credible, this must be the island 
of Cipango, of which we have heard so many wonder- 
ful things. According to my geographical knowledge 
it must be somewhere in this neighborhood." 

On Sunday, the twenty-eighth of October, Colum- 
bus's ships arrived off the coast of Cuba and •' entered 
an attractive river, free from shallows and all other ob- 
structions. =5= * * The mouth of the river had a 
depth of twelve fathoms of water, and a breadth suffi- 
cient for ships to beat in. They anchored within the 
river, and the admiral remarks that the scenery here 
exceeded in beauty any thing he had ever seen, the 
river being bordered with trees of the most beautiful 
and luxuriant foliage of a peculiar appearance, and its 
banks covered with flowers and fruits of different kinds. 
Birds were here in great number singing most 
charmingly. Numerous palm trees were seen, different 
from those of Guinea and Spain, not having the same 
kind of bark. They were of a moderate height and bore 
very large leaves, which the natives used to cover their 
houses. The land appeared quite level. The admiral 
went ashore in a boat, and found two dwellings, which 
he supposed to be those of fishermen, and that the 
owners had fled. He found in one of them a dog un- 
able to bark. Both houses contained nets of palm, 
lines, horn fish-hooks, harpoons of bone, and other 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 117 

implements for fishing, as also many fire-places, and each 
house seemed sufficiently large to shelter a great num- 
ber of people. The admiral gave orders that nothing 
should be touched. * * * They returned on board 
the boat and ascended the river some distance. '^ ''' 
* The admiral declares this to be the most beautiful 
island ever seen, abounding in good harbors and deep 
rivers, with a shore upon which it appears the sea 
never breaks high, as the grass grows down to the 
water's edge, a thing that never happens where the sea 
is rough. Indeed, a high sea they had not yet had 
among these islands. This island, he says, is full of 
attractive mountains, which are lofty, although not of 
great range. The rest of the country is high, similar 
to Sicily, abounding in streams, as they understood 
from the Indians of Guanahani that were on board the 
ships, who informed them by signs that it contained 
ten large rivers, and that the island was so large that 
with their canoes they could not sail round it in twenty 
days. * * * Xhe Indians told them there were 
mines of gold here and pearls. * * * They fur- 
ther informed him that large vessels came there from 
the Grand Khan, and that the main-land was distant a 
voyage of ten days. The admiral named the river and 
port San Salvador." Farther westward, along the 
northern side of the Island, Columbus discovered the 
rivers which he called Rio de la Luna (River of the 
Moon), and the Rio de Mares (River of Seas). The 
houses which were built on the shores of the latter 
river, he says, were "the finest he had yet seen, and 
thinks, the nearer he approaches the continent, they 
will continue to improve. They were of a large size, 
built in the shape of a tent, and each collection of them 
appeared like a camp, without any order of streets, the 



ii8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

houses scattered here and there. Their interiors were 
found very clean and neat, well furnished and set in 
order. The houses were all built of fine palm branches. 
They found here many statues shaped like women, and 
numerous heads somewhat like masks, well made ; 
whether these were used as ornaments, or objects of 
worship, did not appear. Here, about the houses, 
were small fowl originally wild, but now tame." 

On Tuesday, the thirtieth of October, " they sailed 
from the river which they had named Rio de Mares, and 
standing to the northwest, discovered a cape covered 
with palm trees, which the admiral called Cabo de Pal- 
mas ; it is fifteen leagues distant from the place of their 
departure. The Indians on board the Pinta signified to 
the Spaniards, that beyond this cape was a river, and 
from this river to Cuba was a distance of a voyage or a 
journey of four days. The captain of the Pinta de- 
clared that he understood Cuba to be a city, and that the 
land here was a continent of great extent which 
stretched far to the north ; also that the king of this 
country was at war with the Grand Khan, whom the In- 
dians called Cami, and his country or city, Fava and 
other names. The admiral determined to steer for 
this river, and to send a present and the letter of the 
Spanish sovereigns to the king. * * * Seemingly 
the admiral was forty-two degrees distant from the 
equator toward the north, if the manuscript is not cor- 
rupted from which I [Las Casas] have taken this 
[information], and he says that he had undertaken to 
go to the Grand Khan, who, he thinks, was near 
there or in the city of Cathay of the Grand Khan, 
which city is very large according to what ,was told 
before he departed from Spain." 

The vessels having returned on Wednesday to the 
Rio de Mares from a short exploration of the coast, the 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 119 

admiral at sunrise, on Thursday, sent some of his men 
ashore " to visit the houses they saw there. They 
found the inhabitants had all fled, but after some time 
they espied a man. The admiral then sent one of his 
Indians ashore, who called to him from a distance and 
bade him not to fear any harm as the Spaniards were 
a friendly people, not injuring any one nor belonging- 
to the Grand Khan, but on the contrary had made 
many presents of their goods to the inhabitants of the 
islands. The natives, having ascertained that no ill 
treatment was intended them, regained confidence, and 
came in more than sixteen canoes to the vessels, bring- 
ing cotton yarn and other things, which the admiral 
ordered should not be taken from them, as he wished 
them to understand that he was in search of nothing but 
gold, which they called nucay. All day the canoes 
passed between the ships and the shore. The admiral 
saw no gold among them, but remarks that, having ob- 
served an Indian with a piece of wrought silver in his 
nose, he conceived it to be an indication of the exist- 
ence of that metal in the country. The Indians in- 
formed them by signs that within three days many 
traders would come there from the interior to purchase 
the goods of the Spaniards to whom the traders would 
communicate news of the king, who, as far as could be 
learned from the signs of the natives, resided at a 
place that was a journey of four days from there. 
They informed the Spaniards also that many persons 
had been sent to tell the king respecting the admiral. 
These people were found to be of the same race and 
manners as those already seen, without any religion 
that could be discovered. The Spaniards never saw 
the Indians who were kept on board the vessels en- 
gaged in any act of worship, but they would, when di- 



I20 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

rected, make the sign of the cross, and repeat the Salve 
and Ave Maria, with their hands extended toward 
heaven. The language is the same throughout these 
islands and the people friendly toward one another, 
which the admiral says he believes to be the case in 
all the neighboring parts, and that they are at war with 
the Grand Khan, whom they call Cavila, and his country 
Bafan. These people go naked as the others. * * * 
It is certain, says the admiral, that this is the continent, 
and that we are in the neighborhood of Zayto and 
Guinsay, a hundred leagues more or less distant from 
the one or the other," ' 

With his thoughts all aglow with his seeming 
power to prove the correctness of his geographical 
conjecture that he had reached the eastern coast of 
Asia, Columbus sent from this place, on the second of 
November, Rodrigo de Jerez of Ayamonte, and Luis 
de Torres, a Jew, (the latter having lived with the 
adelantado of Murcia, and who knew Hebrew, Chal- 
daic, and some Arabic) and two Indians, into the 
interior of the island, with letters to the Grand Khan 
of Cathay. " He gave them strings of beads to pur- 
chase provisions, and directed them to return within 
six days. Specimens of spicery were intrusted to them 
that they might know if any thing similar existed in 
the country. He took care to instruct them how they 
should inquire for the king, and what they were to say 
to inform him that the king and queen of Castile had 

' From this point, says Humboldt, as related by Columbus's friend, the 
Cura de los Palacios, " he proposed, if he had provision enough ' to continue his 
course westward, and to return to Spain, either by water, by way of Ceylon 
(Taprobane) rodeando iodo la tierra de los A'egros, or by land, through Jerusalem 
and Jaffa.' * * * See the important manuscript of Andres Bernaldez, Cura 
de la villa de los Palacios (Historia de los Reyes Catolicos, cap. 123). This 
history comprises the years from 1488 to 1513. Bernaldez had received Colum- 
bus into his house, in 1496, on his return from his second voyage." — Hum- 
boldt : Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. p. 640, and note. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 121 

dispatched him with letters and a present for his majesty. 
Furthermore, the envoys were instructed to obtain 
some knowledge of the country, and observe the ports 
and rivers, with their distances from the place where 
the ships lay. Here the admiral took this night the 
altitude with a quadrant, and found that he was forty- 
two degrees from the equator, and by his calculation 
eleven hundred and forty-two leagues from Ferro, and 
he was confident that it was the continent." ^ 

Among the noticeable things which the embassa- 
dors observed while journeying into the interior of 
Cuba was the common use of tobacco by the natives. 
" The two Spaniards," says Las Casas, " met upon 
their journey great numbers of people of both sexes : 
the men always with a firebrand in their hands and 
certain herbs for smoking. These were dry and were 
placed in a dry leaf, after the manner of those paper 
tubes which the boys in Spain use at Whitsuntide. 
Lighting one end, they drew the smoke by sucking at 
the other. This causes drowsiness and a kind of in- 
toxication, and according to the statement of the natives 
relieves them from the feeling of fatigue. These tubes 
they call by the name oi tabacos!' ^ 

While waiting the return of the embassadors to the 
Grand Khan, Columbus acquired some knowledge of 
the productions of Cuba. " The soil is very fertile, pro- 
ducing mantes, a root like a carrot, tasting like chest- 
nuts. Beans are also found here but very dissimilar 
to ours ; also cotton, growing spontaneously among 
the mountains. I am of the opinion that it is gathered 
at all seasons of the year, for I observed upon a single 

' The real distance is said to be eleven hundred and five leagues. — Vide Per- 
sonal narrative of the first voyage of Columbus to America. [Kettell.] pp. 38-73. 

' Historia general de las Indias. Las Casas. cap. xlvi. Coleccion de los 
viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. torn. i. 



122 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

plant blossoms, buds, and open pods. A thousand 
other productions I have also observed, which doubt- 
less are of great value, but it is impossible for me to 
describe them." 

On the fifth of November, the party sent to the 
Grand Kahn returned, and gave these particulars of 
their journey : "After having travelled a dozen leagues 
they came to a town containing about fifty houses, 
where there were probably a thousand inhabitants ; 
each house containing a large number of people. The 
houses were built after the manner of larofe tents. The 
inhabitants received them, after their fashion, with great 
ceremony. The men and women flocked to behold 
them, and they were lodged in their best houses. They 
showed their admiration and reverence by touching 
the strangers, kissing their hands and feet, and mani- 
festing astonishment. They imagined them to be from 
heaven, and signified as much to them. They were 
feasted with such food as the natives had to offer. 
Upon their arrival at the town the chief men of the 
place led them by the arms to the principal building ; 
here they gave them seats, and the Indians sat upon 
the ground in a circle round them. The Indians who 
had accompanied the Spaniards explained to the 
natives the manner in which their Strang^ guests 
lived, and gave a favorable account of their character. 
The men then left the building, and the women entered, 
and sat around the Spaniards as the men had 
done. They kissed their hands and feet and examined 
them to see .whether they were flesh and bone like 
their own. * * * jsj^ village was seen upon the 
road of a larger size than five houses. "^ ''>^ * Great 
numbers of birds were observed, all different from 
those of Spain except the nightingales, which delighted 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 123 

them with their songs. Partridges and geese were 
also found in great number. Of quadrupeds they saw 
none except dogs that could not bark. The soil appeared 
fertile and under good cultivation, producing the 
fitames already mentioned and beans very dissimilar 
to ours, as well as the grain called panic. They saw 
large quantities of cotton, spun and manufactured. 
A sinele house contained more than five hundred 
arrobas^ of it. Four thousand quintals might be collect- 
ed here yearly. * * * These people are inoffen- 
sive and peaceable. They are unclothed, but the women 
wear a slight coverino- about their loins. Their man- 
ners are very decent, and their complexion not very 
dark, but lighter than the inhabitants of the Canary 
Islands. ' I have no doubt, most serene sovereigns,' 
says the admiral, ' that were some proper, devout, and 
religious persons to come among them and learn their 
language, it would be an easy matter to convert them 
all to Christianity, and I hope in our Lord that your 
highnesses will devote yourselves with much diligence 
to this object, and bring as great a multitude into the 
church, inasmuch as you have exterminated those who 
refused to confess the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.' 

" ' I have observed that these people have no religion, 
neither are they idolaters, but are a very gentle race, 
without the knowledge of any iniquity. They neither 
kill, steal, nor carry weapons, and are so timid that one 
of our men can put a hundred of them to flight, al- 
though they readily sport and play tricks with them. 
They have the knowledge that there is a God above, 
and are firmly persuaded that we have come from 
heaven. They quickly learn such prayers as we re- 
peat to them, and also to make the sign of the cross.' 

* An arroba is equal to twenty-five pounds. 



124 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" Along the Rio de Mares, which I left last evening, 
[Sunday, the eleventh of November,] there is undoubt- 
edly considerable mastic, and the quantity might be 
increased, for the trees when transplanted easily take 
root. They are of a lofty size, bearing leaves and fruit 
like the lentisk. The tree, however, is taller and has a 
larger leaf than the lentisk, as is mentioned by Pliny, 
and as I have myself observed in the island of Scio, in 
the Archipelago. I ordered many of these trees to be 
tapped in order to extract the resin, but as the weather 
was rainy all the time I was on the river, I was unable 
to procure more than a very small quantity, which I 
have preserved for your highnesses. * * * Great 
quantities of cotton might be raised here, and sold 
profitably, as I think, without being carried to Spain, 
but to the cities of the Grand Khan, which we shall 
doubtless discover, as well as many others belonging to 
other sovereigns. These may become a source of 
profit to your highnesses by trading there with the 
productions of Spain and of the other countries of 
Europe. Here also is to be found plenty of aloe, 
which, however, is not of very great value, but the 
mastic assuredly is, as it is found nowhere else than in 
th-e previously mentioned island of Scio, where, if I 
rightly remember, it is produced to the amount of fifty 
thousand ducats annually." 

Columbus further remarks, that at this point, near 
the river which he had called Rio del Sol, "he found 
the weather somewhat cold, and, as it was in the win- 
ter, he thought it not prudent to prosecute his discov- 
eries any farther toward the north." ' 

'Las Casas remarks : " From what he here relates, it appears that had he 
proceeded farther northerly he would undoubtedly, in two more days, have dis- 
covered Florida." — MS. of Las Casas. Vide Personal narrative of the first 
voyage of Columbus to America. [Kettell.] pp. 73-S6. 




A copy of a part of the map of the New World (tabvla terre nove) contained in the edition 
of Ptolemy's Geography printed at Strasburg in 1513. (This part of tlie original is gi inches 
long.) 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 125 

vSpeaking of his explorations along the coast of 
Cuba, in his letter to Rafael Sanchez, the admiral says : 
" I sailed along its coast toward the west, discovering 
so great an extent of territory that I could not imagine 
it to be an island, but the continent of Cathay. * * * 
I continued on my course, still expecting to meet with 
some town or city, but after having gone a great dis- 
tance, and not arriving at any, and finding myself 
proceeding toward the north, which I was desirous to 
avoid on account of the cold, and, moreover, meeting 
with a contrary wind, I determined to return to the south, 
and therefore put about and sailed back to a harbor that 
I had observed." ^ 

On Monday, the twelfth of November, they had 
sailed by sunset eighteen leagues, east by south, to a 
cape which Columbus called Cabo de Cuba. " On the 
following Wednesday he entered a spacious and deep 
harbor," containing so many islands that they could not 
be counted. * * * He declares that it is his opin- 
ion these islands are the innumerable ones which, on 
the maps, are placed at the extreme part of the East, 
and says that he believes they contain great riches, 
precious stones, and spicery, and extend far to the south, 
spreading out on each side. He named this place La 
Mar de Nuestra Senora, and the port, near the strait 
that extends to these islands, Puerto del Principe." 

On Wednesday, the twenty-first of November, 
when the vessels were about eighty miles southeast of 
Puerto del Principe, " the admiral " says Las Casas, 
" found they were forty-two degrees north of the 
equator as at Puerto de Mares,^ but he says here that 
he has stopped using the quadrant until he should go 

' Letter of Columbus to Rafael (or Gabriel) Sanchez, dated Lisbon, March 
14. 1493- 

^ ' ' Only 21° of latitude." — Navarrete. 



126 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

on land that he miofht mend it. From this statement 
it would seem that he doubted that he was so far from 
the equator, and he had reason, for it was not likely 

since these islands are in degrees.' To know 

whether the quadrant was in good working order, it is 
said that he took an observation to see if he was north 
as high as Castile ; and if this be true, and he was as 
high as Florida, what is the situation of the islands 
already mentioned ? ^ Moreover, it is said that the 
heat w^as great. It is evident that if he were along 
the coast of Florida, it should not have been hot, but 
cold.3 And it is also manifest that in no part of the 
world in the latitude of forty-two degrees is great heat 
experienced except by some accidental cause, and even 
this^-exception I [Las Casas] believe has never been 
known." 

A number of other places were sailed to by the 
inquisitive navigator, which, in the chronological order 
of their discovery, he named Puerto de Santa Cata- 
lina, Cabo del Pico, Cabo de Campana, and Puerto 

; ' A blank space in the original. 

"^ The island of Cuba lies between 19° 50' and 23° 10' north latitude, and 
74° 7' and 84° 58' west longitude. Florida is about one hundred and thirty 
miles north of Cuba. 

' The argument of Las Casas concerning the heat at forty-two degrees 
north latitude is invalidated by Columbus's reasons for not sailing Rlrther to the 
north. In his letter to Rafael Sanchez he says : " Finding myself proceeding 
toward the north, which I was desirous to avoid on account of the cold, and, 
moreover, meeting with a contrary wind, I determined to return to the south." 
It would seem that Columbus was unable to satisfy his own doubts respecting 
the latitude of the places in the North to which he had sailed. If he had not 
mentioned that he was in doubt respecting the working condition of his quad- 
rant, the question of his sailing as far north as the forty-second parallel would 
be an important matter for geographical discussion. Navarrete says : "The 
quadrants of that time measured the double altitude, and consequently the 
forty-two degrees which Columbus says he was distant from the equator are to 
be reduced to twenty-one north latitude, which is the parallel to which he had 
sailed." — ViJe Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. tom. i. 
pp. 44, 47, 62. Personal narrative of the first voyage of Columbus to America. 
[Kettell.] p. 95. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 127 

Santo. At this last-named harbor, on Saturday, the first 
of December, "they planted a cross in the solid rock." 
Thence he sailed to Cabo Lindo, and thence to Cabo 
del Monte. On Wednesday, the fifth of December, 
" he determined to leave Cuba or Juana,' which 
hitherto he had taken for a continent on account 
of its size, having sailed along the coast a hundred and 
twenty leagues. He therefore left the shore and 
steered southeast by east, as the land last discovered 
appeared in that direction. He took this course be- 
cause the wind always came round from the north to 
northeast, and from there to east and southeast. It 
blew hard and they carried all sail, having a smooth 
sea and a current favoring them, so that from morning 
to one in the afternoon they had sailed eight miles an 
hour for nearly six hours. The nights here are said to 
be nearly fifteen hours long. After this they went 
ten miles an hour, and by sunset had sailed toward the 
southeast eighty-eight miles, which are twenty-two 
leagues." 

On Thursday, the sixth of December, Columbus 
" found himself four leagues from the harbor named 
Puerto Maria." From this place he descried several 
headlands to which he respectively gave the names of 
Cabo del Estrella, Cabo del Elefante, and Cabo de 
Cinquin. " There appeared to be between the two 
last-mentioned capes a very wide channel, which the 
sailors said separated an island from the mainland. 
This island he named Tortuga. The land here ap- 
peared high, and not mountainous, but even and level, 
like the finest arable tracts. The whole or the o-reat 
part of it seemed to be cultivated, and the plantations 

' Ferdinand Columbus says the admiral called the island of Cuba, Juana, 
in honor of Prince Juan, heir of Castile. — Vide Histoire del S. D. Fernando 
Colombo, cap. xxvi. 



128 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

resembled the wheat fields in the plain of Cordova in 
the month of May." 

In the evening the ships entered the harbor 
" which he named Puerto de San Nicolas, for it was 
the day of that saint." On Friday he found the har- 
bor which he named Puerto de la Concepcion. This 
harbor " is about a thousand paces or a quarter of a 
league wide at the mouth, without a bank or a shoal, 
but exceedingly deep to the edge of the beach. It 
extends almost three thousand paces, with a fine clear 
bottom. Any ship may enter it and anchor without 
the least hazard. Here are two small streams, and 
opposite the mouth of the harbor several plains, the 
most beautiful in the world, resemblingf those of Cas- 
tile, except that they surpass them. On this account 
the admiral named the island Espanola." ' 

On Wednesday, the twelfth of December, " a large 
cross was set up at the entrance of the harbor upon a 
beautiful spot upon the western side, 'as an indication,' 
in the words of the admiral, * that your highnesses 
possess the country, and particularly for a memorial of 
Jesus Christ, our Lord, and the mark of Christianity.' 
* * * The admiral here ascertained the lengrth of 
the day and night, and found that from sunrise to sun- 
set there passed twenty glasses of half an hour each, 
although he says there may be some error in the cal- 
culation, as the glass may not have been turned quickly 
enough, or the contrary. He states further, that he 
took an observation with the astrolabe and found the 
latitude to be seventeen degrees. * * * 

" The people here were all naked, king as well 

* The island of Espanola, which the natives called Haiti, lies between 
17° 36' and 19° 59' north latitude, and 68° 20' and 74° 38' west longitude. It 
is about fifty miles east-southeast of Cuba and about seventy-five west-northwest 
of Porto Rico. It is now called Ilayti or San Domingo. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 129 

as subjects, the females showing no evidences of bash- 
fulness. Both sexes were more handsome than those 
they had hitherto seen. Their color was light, and if 
they were clothed and protected from the sun and air 
they would almost be as fair as the inhabitants of Spain. 
The temperature of the air was cool and exceedingly 
pleasant. The land is high, covered with plains 
and valleys, and the highest mountains are arable. No 
part of Castile could produce a territory comparable to 
this in beauty and fertility. The whole island and that 
of Tortuga are covered with cultivated fields, like the 
plain of Cordova. In these they raise ajes, which are 
slips set in the ground, at the end of which roots grow 
like carrots. They grate these to powder, knead it, 
and make it into bread of a very pleasant taste, like 
that of chestnuts. The stalk is set out anew and pro- 
duces another root, and this is repeated four or five 
times. The largest and most excellent that had been 
met with anywhere (the admiral says they are also 
found in Guinea) were those of this island, being of the 
size of a man's legf. The natives here, according to the 
statement of the admiral, were stoutly built and coura- 
geous, very different from the timid islanders of the 
other parts ; agreeable in their intercourse and without 
any religion. * * * They saw a native whom the 
admiral took to be the governor of the district, and 
whom the Indians called the cacique. He had a plate 
of gold as large as one's hand, with which he seemed 
desirous of bartering. He carried it to his house and 
had it cut into pieces, which he traded away one by 
one." 

One of the caciques of the island sent a messenger 
to Columbus bearing as a present to him " a girdle, to 
which was attached, instead of a pouch, a mask having 
the nose, tongue, and ears of beaten gold." 



130 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" I think," Columbus writes, " no one who has seen 
these parts can say less in their praise than I 
have said. I repeat that it is a matter of wonder to 
see the things we have beheld, and the multitudes of 
people in this island, which I call Espanola, and the 
Indians Bohio. The natives are singularly agreeable in 
their intercourse and conversation with us, and are not 
like the others, who, when they speak, appear to be 
uttering menaces. The figures of the men and women 
are fine, and their color is not black, although they 
paint themselves. The most of them paint themselves 
red, others a dark hue, and others different colors, which, 
I understand, is done to keep the sun from injuring 
them. The houses and towns are very attractive, and 
the inhabitants live in each settlement under the rule 
of a sovereign or judge, to whom they pay implicit 
obedience. These magistrates are persons of excellent 
manners and great reserve, and give their orders by a 
sign with the hand, which is understood by all the 
people with surprising quickness." 

On Monday, the twenty-fourth of December, as 
Columbus's ship, the Santa Maria, was running along 
the north side of Espanola, off the headland named 
Punta Santa, " at the end of the first watch, about 
eleven at night, when the vessel was about a league dis- 
tant from the point of land, the admiral lay down to 
sleep, having taken no rest for two days and a night. 
As the sea was calm, the man at the helm left his post 
to a boy, and also went off to sleep, contrary to 
the explicit orders of the admiral, who had throughout 
the voyage forbidden, in calm or storm, the helm to be 
intrusted to a boy. The admiral was free from any 
dread of rocks or shoals, for the Sunday before, when 
he sent the sailors in boats to the king who had invited 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 131 

him to visit him, they had passed three and a half 
leagues to the east of Punta Santa, and had surveyed 
the whole coast for three leagues beyond that point, 
and ascertained where the vessels might pass, a 
thing never done before in the whole voyage. But as 
it pleased our Lord, at midnight there being a dead 
calm and the sea perfectly motionless, as in a cup, the 
whole crew, seeing the admiral had retired, went off to 
sleep, leaving the ship in the care of the boy already 
mentioned. The current carried her imperceptibly 
toward the shoals in the neighborhood, upon which she 
struck with a noise that could have been heard a league 
off." 

Although every thing was done to keep the damaged 
vessel afloat by Columbus and the few men who re- 
mained on board, " she opened between her ribs and 
slowly settled down on the shoal." On the morning of 
Christmas the ship was unloaded with the assistance of 
the natives, who with their canoes conveyed the goods 
in her to the beach. These were afterward stowed in 
some houses which the cacique of the region had offered 
to Columbus for that purpose. The same ruler after- 
ward gave the admiral a large mask, with pieces of gold 
at the ears, eyes, and other parts of it, and also some 
jewels of the same metal. "All these things had a great 
effect upon the admiral in assuaging his grief for the 
loss of his ship, and he became convinced that our 
Lord had permitted the shipwreck in order that he 
might select this place for a settlement. 

" 'And to this end,' he says, * so many favorable 
things conspired, that it cannot be called a disaster, but 
a great turn of good fortune, for if we had not run 
aground, we should have kept off without anchoring 
here, the place being in a large bay inside of two or 



132 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

three shoals. Neither should I otherwise have been 
induced to leave any men in these parts during the 
voyage ; even if I had, I could not have spared them the 
needful provisions and materials for their fortification. 
Many of my crew have solicited me for permission to 
remain, and I have to-day [Wednesday, the twenty- 
sixth of December] ordered the construction of a fort, 
with a tower and a ditch, all to be well built, not that I 
think such a fortification necessary as a defence against 
the inhabitants, for I have already stated that with my 
present crew I could subjugate the whole island, which 
I believe to be larger than the kingdom of Portugal, 
and twice as populous, but that I think it prudent, since 
the territory is at such a distance from our country, and 
that the natives may understand the genius of the 
people of your highnesses and what they are able to 
perform, so that they may be held in obedience by fear 
as well as by love. For this purpose I have directed 
that a quantity of timber for the construction of the fort 
shall be provided, also bread and wine be left to suffice 
for more than a year, seed for planting, the long-boat of 
the ship, a calker, a carpenter, a gunner, a cooper, and 
many other persons of the number of those who have 
earnestly desired to serve your highnesses, and oblige 
me by remaining here and searching for fhe gold 
mine.' " 

The admiral further remarks " that every piece of 
the ship was saved, for not even so much as a thong, 
board, or nail was lost, for she was as complete as 
when she first sailed, except that which was lost by 
cutting her to get out the casks and merchandise. 
These were carried on shore and well secured, as has 
already been mentioned. He adds that he hopes to 
find, on his return from Castile, a ton of gold collected 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 133 

by those who remained, by trading with the natives, 
and that they will have succeeded in discovering- the 
mine and the spices, and all these in such quantities 
that before three years the king and queen may under- 
take the recovery of the holy sepulchre. ' For I have 
before proposed to your highnesses,' he writes, ' that 
the profits of this undertaking should be employed in 
the conquest of Jerusalem, at which your highnesses 
smiled and said you were pleased, and had the same 
inclination.' " 

" He left on the island of Espafiola, which the In- 
dians called Bohio, a fort and thirty-nine men, whom 
he states to have been great friends of King Gua- 
canagari. Over these he placed Diego de Arana, a 
native of Cordova, Pedro Gutierrez, groom of the king's 
wardrobe, and Rodrigo de Escovedo, a native of Seville 
and nephew of Fray Rodrigo Perez, with all the 
powers the king and queen had delegated to him. He 
left them all the goods which had been sent for traffick- 
ing, a great quantity, and every thing belonging to the 
ship which had been wrecked. The goods he directed 
should be traded away for gold." 

In commemoration of the day of Christ's nativity, 
on which his ship was wrecked at this place, he called the 
settlement Villa de la Navidad (city of the Nativity). 
He further writes in his journal that " he had heard 
of another island behind that of Juana, toward the south, 
in which there was a still greater quantity of gold, and 
where it was found in grains of the size of a bean. 
* * * This island was called by the Indians Ya- 
maye." ^ 

" It was the admiral's intention to coast farther 
along the island of Espanola, which he might have 

' Apparently the original name of Jamaica. The island of Jamaica is about 
eighty-five miles from Cuba. 



134 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

done upon his homeward course, but as he considered 
that the captains of the two caravels were brothers, 
namely, Martin Alonso Pinzon and Vicente Yanez, and 
that they had a party attached to them, and that they and 
their partisans had manifested considerable haughtiness 
and avarice, disobeying his commands regardless of the 
honors he had conferred upon them, which misde- 
meanors, as well as the treachery of Martin Alonso, in 
deserting him,' he had winked at, without complaining, 
in order not to throw impediments in the way of the 
voyage — he thought it best to return home as quickly 
as possible. He adds that he had many faithful men 
among his crews, but resolved to overlook for the time 
the behavior of the refractory ones, and not at such an 
unfavorable season undertake to punish them." 

On Tuesday, the fifteenth of January, while the 
caravels were anchored in the bay which he called the 
Golfo de las Flechas (the Gulf of Arrows), he describes 
the weapons of the natives. " The bows," he says, 
" are equal in size to those of France and England, 
and the arrows like the javelins used by the inhabitants 
of the other islands, which are made of the stalks of the 
cane while it is in seed. They are very straight, about 
a yard and a half in length, and doubled, with a sharp 
piece of wood, a span and a half long, at the end. At 
the point of this some attach a fish's tooth, but the 
most of them grass. * * * The bows of the In- 
dians appear to be made of yew." The quantity of 
sea-weed which he found growing in this bay led Colum- 
bus to infer that the Indies were near the Canary 
Islands, not more than four hundred leagues distant. 

On Wednesday morning, the sixteenth of January, 

^ On the twenty-first of November, 1492, Martin Alonso Pinzon, in the 
Pinta, had left the other vessels and remained away from them until the sixth 
of January, 1493. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 135 

they set sail from the Golfo de las Flechas, to go to the 
island of Carib. "After sailing sixty-four miles, as they 
estimated, the Indians on board signified that the island 
was to the southeast, when they altered their course, 
and proceeded in that direction, and after sailing several 
leagues the wind freshened and blew very favorably 
for their return to Spain. The crews began to grow 
despondent at leaving their homeward course, on ac- 
count of the leaky condition of the vessels, (for there 
was no remedy for it but the help of God,) and the 
admiral found himself constrained to change his course 
again, and steer directly for Spain." "" 

Columbus, afterward writing to Rafael Sanchez re- 
specting his explorations along the coast of Espanola, 
remarks that the island of Espanola is " greater in cir- 
cuit than all of Spain, from Colibre in Catalonia, near 
Perpignan, round the coast of the sea of Spain, along 
Granada, Portugal, Galicia, and Biscay, to Fuenterabia, 
at the cape of Biscay. * * * Each native, as far as 
I can understand, has one wife, with the exception of 
the king and princes, who are permitted to have as many 
as twenty. The women appear to do more work than 
the men. Whether there exist any such thing here 
as private property, I have not been able to ascertain. 
I have seen an individual appointed to distribute to 
the others, especially food and such things. 

" People of an extraordinary description I did not 
see, neither did I hear of any, except those of the island 
Caris, which is the second island on the way from 
Espanola to India. This island is inhabited by a people 
who are regarded by their neighbors as exceedingly 
ferocious. They feed upon human flesh. These peo- 
ple have many kinds of canoes with which they make 

' MS. of Las Casas. — Vide Personal narrative of the first voyage of Colum- 
bus to America. [Kettell.] pp. 86-205. 



136 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

incursions upon all the islands of India, robbing and 
plundering wherever they go. Their difference from 
the others consists in their wearing long hair like that 
of women, and in using bows and arrows of cane ; 
these last constructed, as I have already related, by 
fixing a piece of sharpened wood at the larger end. 
On this account they are considered very ferocious by 
the other Indians, and are much feared by them." ^ 

Speaking of the pecuniary profits of the voyage 
Columbus wrote : " I am enabled to promise the ac- 
quisition, by a trifling assistance from their majesties, 
of any quantity of gold, drugs, cotton, and mastic, 
which last article is found in the island of Scio ; also, 
any quantity of aloe, and as many slaves for the ser- 
vice of the marine as their majesties may need. The 
same may be said of rhubarb and a great variety of 
other things which, I have no doubt, will be discovered 
by those I have left at the fort, as I did not stop at any 
single place, unless obliged to do so by the weather 
with the exception of Villa de la Navidad, where we 
remained some time to build the fort and provide the 
necessary means for the defence of the place. 

" Although the discoveries actually accomplished 
appear great and surprising, yet I should have^ achieved 
much more had I been furnished with a suitable fleet. 
Nevertheless the great success of this undertaking is 
not to be ascribed to my own merits, but to the holy 
catholic faith and to the piety of our sovereigns, 
the Lord often granting to men what they never 
imagine themselves capable of accomplishing, even 
that which appears impracticable, for he is accustomed 
to hear the prayers of his servants and those who love 
his commandments. In this way has it happened to me 

' Columbus's letter to Rafael Sanchez. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 137 

that I have succeeded in an undertaking never before 
accomplished by man." ^ 

On Thursday night, the fourteenth of February, a 
violent tempest arose, " the waves crossing and dash- 
ing against one another so that the vessel [the Nina] 
was overwhelmed, and not able to get out from between 
them. The foresail was set very low, in order to carry 
her somewhat out of her dangerous situation. They 
stood under it for three hours, going twenty miles, 
when the wind and sea increasing, they began to drive 
before it, not having any other deliverance. At the 
same time the Pinta, in which was Martin Alonso 
Pinzon, began to scud likewise, and they soon lost sight 
of her, although the two caravels made signals to each 
other with lights, until from the fury of the storm they 
were no longer visible." The fear of being lost now 
overcame Columbus and his men. They prayed and 
made many vows. " The admiral ordered that lots 
should be cast for one of them [if they safely reached 
land] to go on a pilgrimage to Santa Maria of Guada- 
lupe and carry a wax taper of five pounds' weight. He 
made them all to take an oath that the one on whom the 
lot fell should perform the pilgrimage. For this pur- 
pose as many peas were selected as there were persons 
on board. One of the peas was marked with a cross, 
and all were shaken together in a cap. The first who 
put his hand into the cap was the admiral, and he drew 
out the crossed pea. So the lot fell on him, and he 
considered himself as bound to accomplish the pil- 
grimage. Another lot was taken for a pilgrimage to 
Santa Maria of Loretto, in the province of Ancona, 
the territory of the pope, where is the house in which 
Our Lady has performed so many miracles. This lot 

^ Columbus's letter to Rafael Sanchez. 



138 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

fell on a sailor of Puerto de Santa Maria, called Pedro 
de Villa. The admiral promised to furnish him with 
the money for his expenses, A third lot was deter- 
mined upon for the selection of a person who should 
watch a whole night in Santa Clara de Moguer, and 
have a mass said there. This lot fell on the admiral. 
After this he and all the crew made a vow to go in 
procession, clothed in penitential garments, to the first 
church dedicated to Our Lady which they should meet 
with on arriving on land, and there pay their devotions. 
Besides these general vows, every individual made a 
private one, all expecting to be lost, so terrible was the 
violence of the hurricane. Their danger was increased 
by the want of ballast in the vessel, * * * which 
the admiral had neglected to supply among the islands, 
because he wished to husband his time in making dis- 
coveries, and expected to take in ballast at the island 
of Matinino, which he intended to visit. The only 
thing that they could do in this emergency was to fill 
with sea-water such empty casks as they could find, 
and by doing this they obtained some relief. 

" Here the admiral speaks of the circumstances 
which caused him to fear that our Lord would suffer 
them to perish, and of some which made him hope 
that he would bring them safe to land, and not allow 
the important information they were carrying to the 
king and queen to be lost. He seems to have felt 
the greatest anxiety to have his wonderful discovery 
known, so that the world might be convinced that his 
assertions had been correct and that he had accom- 
plished what he had professed himself able to do. The 
thought of this not being done gave him the greatest 
disquietude, and he was constantly apprehending that 
the most trifling thing might defeat his whole intention. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 139 

He ascribes this to his want of faith and confidence in 
a divine providence, but comforts himself by reflecting 
upon the many mercies God had shown him in having 
enabled him to succeed in his project, when so many 
adversities and hindrances opposed him in Castile, and 
afterward to accomplish his great discovery. And as 
he had made the service of God the aim and business 
of his undertaking, and as he had hitherto favored him 
by granting all his desires, he indulges in the hope that 
he will continue to favor him, and will give him a safe 
return. He also remembered that God had delivered 
him on the outward voyage, when he had much greater 
reason to fear ; that the eternal God gave him reso- 
lution and courage to withstand his men when they 
conspired against him and with a unanimous and 
menacinor determination resolved to turn back. With 
these thoughts, and the consideration of other wonder- 
ful favt)rs he had enjoyed, he says he ought not to be 
in fear of the tempest ; but he adds that his apprehen- 
sions and the anguish of his mind would not allow him 
to rest. Besides, he continues, his anxiety was in- 
creased by reflecting upon the condition of his two 
sons whom he had left at their studies in Cordova, — 
these would be left orphans in a foreign land, and the 
king and queen being ignorant of the services he had 
rendered them by the voyage, would not feel any 
inclination to provide for them. On this account, and 
that their highnesses might be informed that our Lord 
had granted success to the undertaking in the discovery 
of the Indies, and might know that storms did not pre- 
vail in those regions (which was apparent from the 
plants and trees growing down to the brink of the sea), 
he devised the means of acquainting them with the 
circumstances of the voyage in case they should perish 



140 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

in the storm. This he did by writing an account of it on 
parchment, as full as possible, and earnestly entreated 
the finder to carry it to the king and queen of Spain. 
The parchment was rolled up in a waxed cloth and 
well tied. A larsfe wooden cask beingf brought, he 
placed the roll inside of it, and threw the cask into 
the sea, none of the crew knowing what it was, but all 
thinkinof that it was some act of devotion." ' 

On the sixteenth of February the Nina reached the 
Azores, and two days afterward was riding at anchor at 
the island of Santa Maria. Departing from the Azores 
on the twenty-fourth of February, the Nina again en- 
countered another storm, which caused Columbus to 
take refuse in the mouth of the river Taofus, on the 
fourth of March. From this roadstead he sent a 
courier overland to Spain bearing the intelligence of 
his arrival at this haven on the coast of Portugal, and 
another to the king of Portugal to ask permission to 
anchor in the harbor of Lisbon. 

When, on the sixth of March, it became known in 
Lisbon, says Ferdinand Columbus, " that the ship came 
from the Indies, such throngs of people went aboard 
to see the Indians and to hear the news, that the ves- 
sel could not contain them, and the water was covered 
with boats, some of the people praising God for the 
success of so great an undertaking, and others storming 
because the Portuguese had lost the discovery through 
the king's incredulity. ""' * * The next day the 
kinof wrote to the admiral conofratulatinof him on his 
safe return, and expressing the desire, since the admiral 
was in his dominions, that he would visit him [at Val- 
paraiso, nine leagues from Lisbon]. * '•' * The 
king ordered all the nobility of his court to go out to 

' MS. of Las Casas. — Vide Personal narrative of the first voyage of Colum- 
bus to America. [Kettell.] pp. 215-222. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 141 

meet him, and when the admiral came into the pres- 
ence of the king, he honored him by commanding him 
to put on his cap and to sit down. The king, having 
heard the particulars of his fortunate voyage, offered 
him all he stood in need of for the service of their 
catholic majesties, although he thought that as the 
admiral had been a captain in the service of Portugal, 
that the discovery belonged to him. To which the ad- 
miral answered that he knew of no agreement by which 
he could obtain it, and that he had strictly obeyed his 
orders, which were that he should not go to the mines 
of Portugal or to Guinea. The king said that it was 
all well, and he did not doubt but justice would be 
done. Having spent considerable time in this conver- 
sation, the king commanded the prior of Crato, the 
greatest man then about him, to entertain the admiral, 
and show him all civility and respect, which was done 
accordingly. Having remained there all Sunday, and 
all Monday until after mass, the admiral took leave of 
the king. * * * ^g j^^ ^^^ ^^ j^jg ^^y ^^ Lisbon, 

he passed a monastery, where the queen was, who sent 
him an earnest entreaty that he would not pass by without 
seeing her. She was much pleased to see him, and 
bestowed upon him all the favor and honor that were 
due to the grreatest lord. That nig-ht a messeno;-er came 
from the king to the admiral, to inform him that if he 
wished to go by land to Spain he would attend him, 
provide lodgings on the way, and furnish him all that 
he might require, as far as the borders of Portugal. 

" On Wednesday, the thirteenth of March, two 
hours after daylight, the admiral set sail for Seville, 
and, on Friday following, at noon, arrived at Saltes, 
and came to anchor in the port of Palos,' from which 

^ Martin Alonso Pinzon had previously arrived in Galicia. 



142 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

he had departed on the third of August, the previous 
year, 1492, seven months and eleven days preceding 
his return." ' 

Desiring as early as possible to make known his 
return and his remarkable discoveries, Columbus, as 
soon as his vessel came to anchor, sent letters to several 
of his friends, in which he gave brief descriptions of 
the people and of the islands which he had found, as 
he believed, in the eastern part of Asia. One of these 
letters, that addressed on the fourteenth of March to 
Rafael or Gabriel Sanchez, treasurer of Spain, was 
shortly afterward translated into Latin and printed at 
Rome. The title given to the letter expresses the 
popular belief respecting the situation of the discovered 
islands : " A letter of Christopher Columbus, to whom 
our age is greatly indebted, respecting the islands of 
India lately found beyond the Ganges." ^ 

Conscious of the greatness of his discovery, Colum- 
bus enthusiastically closes his letter with these words : 
" And now the king, the queen, the princes, and all 
their dominions, as well as the whole of Christendom, 
ought to give thanks to our Saviour, Jesus Christ, who 
has granted us such an achievement and success. Let 

* Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xli, xlii. 

' Epistola Christofori Colom : cui etas nostra muitu debit : de Insulis Indie 
supra Gangem nuper inuetis. Ad quas perqrendas octauo antea mense au- 
spicies & ere invictissimor' Fernadi & Helisabet Hispaniar' Regu missus 
fuerat : ad magnificum dnm Gabrielem Sanchis eorunde Serenissimor' Regum 
Tesaurariu missa : quia nobilis ac literatus vir Leander de Cosco ab Hispano 
ideomate in latinum couertit tertio kal's Maii m.cccc.xciii Pontificatus Alexan- 
dri Sexli anno primo. 

A letter of Christopher Columbus, to whom our age is greatly indebted, 
respecting the islands of India lately found beyond the Ganges. In search of 
which he was sent eight months ago under the auspices and at the expense of 
the most invincible Ferdinand and Isabella, sovereigns of Spain. Sent to the 
magnificent lord, Gabriel Sanchez, treasurer of the same most serene king, and 
which the noble and learned man, Leander de Cosco, translated from the 
Spanish idiom into Latin. The third day of the calends of May, 1493. Pon- 
tificate of Alexander VI., first year. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 143 

processions be ordered, let solemn festivals be cele- 
brated, let the churches be filled with boughs and 
liowers." 

When his father landed at Palos, "he was received 
there," says Ferdinand Columbus, " by all the people 
in procession, giving thanks to God for his fortunate 
success, which, it was hoped, would contribute greatly 
to propagate the Christian religion and enlarge their 
majesties' dominions. All the inhabitants of the place 
considered it a matter of no little fame that the admiral 
had sailed from that port, and that most of the men he 
had with him belonged to it, though many of them, 
through [Martin Alonso] Pinzon's fault, had been mu- 
tinous and disobedient. * * * The admiral then 
proceeded toward Seville, intending to go from there 
to Barcelona where their catholic majesties were. He 
was compelled to tarry a little along the way thither, 
though it were ever so little, to satisfy the curiosity of 
the people where he went, who came from the neigh- 
boring towns to the road along which he journeyed to 
see him, the Indians, and the other things he brought. 
Proceeding in this manner, he reached Barcelona about 
the middle of April, having previously sent their high- 
nesses an account of the good fortune attending his 
voyage, which exceedingly pleased them, and they ap- 
pointed him a most impressive reception as a man that 
had performed for them an extraordinary commission. 
All the court and city went out to meet him. Their 
catholic majesties sat in public in great state, on costly 
chairs, under a canopy of gold-cloth ; and when he ap- 
proached to kiss their hands they arose as to a great 
lord, and were unwilling to give him their hands, and 
caused him to sit down by them. When he had given 
them a brief account of his voyage, they permitted 



144 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

him to retire to his apartment, to which he was at- 
tended by all the court. And he was so highly 
honored and favored by their highnesses, that when 
the king rode about Barcelona, the admiral was on one 
side of him, and the Infante Fortuna on the other, for 
before this, no one rode by the side of his majesty but 
the Infante, who was his near kinsman."' 

Galvano, speaking of the enthusiasm created by 
Columbus's return, says : " Hereupon there arose so 
extraordinary a desire to travel among- the Spaniards 
that they were ready to leap into the sea to swim, if it 
had been possible, unto these new lands." "^ 

* Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xlii. 

* Tratado, que compos o nobre & notauel capitao Antonio Galuao. 



CHAPTER V. 

i493-i5o6. 

The Spanish sovereigns, in order to obtain the 
privilege of extending their sway over the islands dis- 
covered by Columbus, immediately sent embassadors 
to Rome to request Pope Alexander VI. to confirm 
the title of Spain to the recently found lands, for it 
was then believed that the pope had sole and absolute 
authority to dispose of all countries inhabited by 
heathen peoples. Pope Martin V. and his successors 
had already granted to the crown of Portugal the 
possession of all the lands it might acquire by right of 
discovery beyond Cape Bojador toward the East. Pope 
Alexander VI., to reward the Spaniards for wresting 
Spain from the Moors, issued a bull, on the fourth of 
May, 1493, establishing a line of limitation, running 
from the north to the south pole, distant one hundred 
leagues west of the Azores and the Cape Verd Islands, 
giving to Spain all the lands she had discovered or 
might discover west of it, which had not been acquired 
by any Christian power before the preceding Christ- 
mas, and to Portugal all the territory, on the same 
conditions, which lay east of it. These territorial con- 
cessions of the pope caused the possessions of Spain, 
in the western hemisphere, to be called the West In- 
dies, and those of Portugal, in the eastern hemisphere, 
the East Indies. The position of the line of demarka- 
tion displeased the Portuguese. To settle the dispute 

145 



146 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

which it caused, the two countries sent commissioners 
to Tordesillas, Spain, who agreed, on the seventh of 
June, 1494, that the position of the line should be 
changed so that it should pass, north and south, three 
hundred and seventy leagues west of the Cape Verd 
Islands. 

Meanwhile in Spain a fleet of seventeen ships had 
been fitted out to sail to the Indies in the West. About 
fifteen hundred Spanish adventurers took passage on 
the different vessels, which were freighted with agri- 
cultural and mining implements, horses, cattle, and 
stores of various kinds, necessary for planting colonies 
on the newly-discovered islands. Commanded by 
Columbus, the fleet weighed anchor in the roadstead 
of Cadiz, on Wednesday, the twenty-fifth of Septem- 
ber, 1493, and thence sailed toward the West India 
archipelago. 

After a voyage of thirty-eight days the fleet reached 
the island of Dominica. The approach of Columbus 
to the field of his former explorations is thus described : 
" On Saturday night, the second of November, the 
admiral perceiving a great change in the sky and 
winds, and having observed the heavy rains, and be- 
lievinsf that he was near land, ordered most of the sails 
to be furled, and commanded all to be upon the watch, 
and not without cause for that same night, at day- 
break, land was descried seven leagues to the west- 
ward, a high mountainous island, which he called 
Dominica (Sunday), because it was discovered on 
Sunday morning. Shortly afterward he saw another 
island, northeast of Dominica, and then another, and 
another after that, more northward. For this blessing 
which God had been pleased to bestow on them, all 
the men assembled on deck and sang the Salve Regina.. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 147 

and other prayers and hymns very devoutly, giving 
thanks to God, because in twenty days after departing 
from Gomera, [one of the Canary Islands,] they had 
made that land, estimating the distance between them 
to be between seven hundred and fifty and eight hun- 
dred leagues. Finding: no convenient harbor in which 
to anchor on the east side of Dominica, they stood for 
another island, which the admiral called Marigalante, 
which was the name of his ship." ^ Thence he pro- 
ceeded northward " to a large island which he called 
Santa Maria de Guadalupe, to honor her and the 
request of the friars of the house of that name, to 
whom he had made promise to call some island by the 
name of their monastery. * * * Going ashore in 
the boat to view a village which they had observed, 
they found none of the inhabitants in it, the people 
having fled to the woods, except some children to 
whose arms they tied some baubles to allure their 
fathers when they returned. In the houses they found 
geese like ours, a great number of parrots, with red, 
green, blue, and white feathers, as large as common 
cocks. They also found pumpkins, and a kind of fruit 
which looked like our green pine-apples, but much 
larger, and inside full of solid substance like a melon, 
and much sweeter both in taste and smell, that grew 
on lonof stalks like lilies or aloes, wild about the fields. 
* * * They also saw other kinds of fruit and herbs 
different from ours ; beds of cotton nets (hamacas), 
bows and arrows, and other things. * * * 

" The next day, which was Tuesday, the fifth of 
November, the admiral sent two boats ashore to 
capture some natives who might give him a description 
of the country, and tell him how far off and in what 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xlvi. 



148 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

direction Espanola lay. Each boat brought back a youth. 
The youths agreed in saying that they were not of that 
island, but of another called Borriquen, and that the 
inhabitants of that island of Guadalupe were Caribbees 
or cannibals, and had taken them prisoners from their 
own island. Soon after the boats returning to shore, 
to take up some Christians they had left there, six 
women were found with them, who had fled from the 
Caribbees, and came of their own accord aboard the 
ships. * * * Q^Q Qf j-|^g women told them that 
toward the south there were many islands, some in- 
habited, others not, which both she and the other 
women, severally called Giamachi, Cairvaco, Huino, 
Buriari, Arubeira, Sixibei. But the continent, which 
they said was very great, both they and the people 
of Espanola called Zuanta [Yucatan ?], because in 
former times canoes had come from that land to 
barter. * * * fhe same women gave them infor- 
mation where the island of Espaiiola lay ; for though 
the admiral had inserted it in his sea-chart, yet for his 
further information he desired to hear what the people 
of that country said of it. * * * Then the admiral 
landed and went to some houses, where he saw * * * 
a great deal of cotton, spun and unspun, looms to 
weave, a great number of men's skulls hung up, and 
baskets filled with men's bones." ' 

On his way to the island of Espanola, Columbus 
discovered an island which he called San Juan Baptista, 
but the Indians, Borriquen. On the twelfth of No- 
vember he arrived off the north coast of Espanola. 
On Thursday, the twenty-eighth of the same month, 
the discoverer with his fleet entered the harbor of 
the Villa de la Navidad, and found the place burnt and 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xlvi, xlvii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 149 

deserted. The next morning " the admiral landed, 
much concerned to see the houses and fort in ashes 
and nothing left belonging to the Christians except 
some ragged clothing and similar things as are found 
in a place plundered and destroyed. Seeing no one 
to question, the admiral went up a. river that was near 
with some boats. * * * Havinsf found nothing 
but some of the clothing of the Christians, he returned 
to Navldad, where he saw the bodies of eight Chris- 
tians, and of three other persons in the fields, whom 
they recognized by their clothing, and they seemed to 
have been dead about a month. While the Christians 
were searching for some other tokens or writings of 
the dead, a brother of the cacique, Guacanagari, came 
with some Indians to talk with the admiral. These 
could speak some words of Spanish, and knew the 
names of all' the Christians that had been left there. 
They related that the latter soon began to quarrel 
among themselves, and each to take as much gold and 
as many women as they could obtain. Pedro Gutierrez 
and Escovedo thereupon killed a person named Diego, 
and then they and nine others went away with their 
women to a cacique, whose name was Caunaboa, who 
was lord of the mines, and he killed them all. Then 
many days afterward he came with a great number of 
men to Navidad, where there was only Diego de 
Arana with ten men, who had remained with him to 
guard the fort, all the others being dispersed about the 
island. The cacique, Caunaboa, coming there at night, 
set fire to the houses where the Christians lived with 
their women, and the Christians, being frightened, fled 
to the sea, where eight were drowned, and three died 
ashore, whose bodies they showed to them. Guacan- 
agari undertook to defend the Christians, but he and 



ISO DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

his men were wounded and were compelled to flee for 
their lives." " 

About the ninth of December Columbus sailed east- 
wardly from the site of the Villa de la Navidad, and 
anchored before an Indian town, where he determined 
to plant a colony. " He landed with all his men, pro- 
visions and implements, which he had brought in the 
ships of the fleet, at a plain, near a rock, on which a 
fort could easily be built. Here he erected a town, 
and called it Isabela, in honor of Queen Isabella. This 
place was deemed very suitable, inasmuch as the 
harbor was very large, though exposed to the north- 
west, and had an attractive river a bow-shot from it, 
from which canals of water might be cut to run through 
the middle of the town, and beyond was an extensive 
plain, from which the Indians said the mines of Cibao 
were not very distant. For these reason^ the admiral 
was eager to settle the colony. On account of the 
fatigue of the voyage and that caused by his labor 
here, he did not have time to write in his journal, from 
day to day, what happened, as had been his habit. 
He also fell sick, which interrupted his writing from 
the eleventh of December to the twelfth of March, 
1494. Meanwhile he administered the affairs of the 
town according to his ability. He intrusted Alonso de 
Hojeda with fifteen men to discover the mines of 
Cibao. Afterward, on the second of February, twelve 
ships of the fleet set sail for Castile, under the com- 
mand of Antonio de Torres."" 

In March Columbus with a body of armed men ex- 
plored the country of Cibao. "It is rough and stony," 
writes Ferdinand Columbus, " full of gravel, grassy, 
and watered by several rivers in which gold is found. 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. 1. 
' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. li. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 151 

The farther they went into the country the more 
rugged and mountainous they found it. On the tops 
of the mountains were grains of gold-sand, for, as the 
admiral said, the great rains carry it down from the 
summits of the mountains to the rivers in small sand. 
* * * The admiral, perceiving that he was now 
eighteen leagues from Isabela, and the country he had 
left behind him very craggy, ordered a fort to be built 
in a very pleasant and defensible place, which he called 
the castle of San Tomas, to command the country 
about the mines, and to be a place of safety for the 
Christians who went there. The command of this new 
fort he gave to Don Pedro Margarita, a person of 
some importance, with fifty-six men, among whom 
were men of all trades to erect the fort, which was 
built with clay and timber, which made it strong 
enough to resist the attack of any number of Indians 
that might come against it. * * * On Sunday, 
the twenty-ninth of March, Columbus arrived at Isa- 
bela, where melons were already grown fit to eat, 
although it was not more than two months after the 
seed had been put into the ground. Cucumbers came 
up in twenty days, and a wild vine of that country, 
having been pruned, had produced grapes which were 
good and large. The next day, being the thirtieth of 
March, a farmer gathered ears of wheat, the seed of 
which he had sown at the latter end of January. 
There were also pease, but much larger than those 
they sowed. All they sowed came up above the 
ground in three days, and on the twenty-fifth day they 
were eating them. The stones of fruit set in the 
ground sprouted in seven days, and vine branches 
shot out in the same time, and in twenty-five days 
thereafter they gathered green grapes. * * * 



153 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" The admiral, having determined to go to discover 
the continent, appointed a council to govern the island 
in his absence. The persons composing it were Don 
Diego Colon, the admiral's brother, with the title of 
president ; F. Boyl [Friar Bull] and Pedro Fernandez 
Corouel, regents ; Alonzo Sanchez de Carvajal, rector 
of Bacca, and Juan de Luxan, gentlemen of their 
catholic majesties. * * * On Tuesday, the twenty- 
ninth of April, the wind being favorable, Columbus 
arrived at Cabo de San Nicolas, and thence crossed 
over to the island of Cuba, running along the south 
coast of it, and having sailed a league beyond Cabo 
Fuerte, he put into a large bay which he called Puerto 
Grande. '^ * * 

"On Saturday, the third of May, the admiral re- 
solved to sail from Cuba over to Jamaica, that he might 
not leave it behind without knowing whether the re- 
port of the abundance of gold there were true. The 
wind being favorable, he discovered it on Sunday, 
when he was less than half the distance to it. On 
Monday he came to anchor, and thought it was the most 
attractive of all the islands which he had seen in the 
Indies. So many people, in large and small canoes, 
came aboard his vessels that it was quite astonishing. 
The next day he ran along the coast to search for 
harbors. When the boats went to examine the 
havens, there came out so many canoes and armed 
men to defend the country, that the men in the 
boats were forced to return to the ships, not through 
fear, but to avoid making enemies of them. * * * 
On Tuesday, the thirteenth of May, Columbus de- 
termined to stand over again for Cuba to coast 
along it, intending not to return until he had sailed 
five or six hundred leagues, and was satisfied whether 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 153 

it were a continent or an islanda * * * On 
Friday, tl:ie thirteenth of June, the admiral perceiving 
that the coast of Cuba ran far to the west, and that 
it was a matter of the greatest difficulty to sail that 
way on account of the infinite number of islands and 
sand-bars that were on all sides of them, and he also 
beginning to be in want of provisions, for which reason 
he could not continue his voyage as he had intended, 
he determined to return to the town he had besun to 
build in Espanola. To supply himself with wood and 
water, he anchored at the island Evangelista, which is 
thirty leagues in circuit, and seven hundred from Do- 
minica." ' 

While Columbus was exploring the coast of Cuba, 
near the island of EvangeHsta, on the twelfth of June, 
it is said that he, for the purpose of furnishing indis- 
putable evidence that he had reached the dominions of 
the Grand Khan, sent Fernando Perez de Luna, his 
notary, with four attesting witnesses, to the vessels, 
and had each person on board to make a declaration 
under oath that he was convinced that the land he saw 
was a part of the continent of Asia, and that he be- 
lieved any one could go from it by land to Spain.^ The 
notary, when taking the depositions, it is said, informed 
each person giving this testimony, that should he for 
any malicious purpose afterward assert a different 
opinion, he would, if an officer, be made to pay a 
penalty of ten thousand maravedis for such an offence, 
and if a person of lower rank, he would receive a 
hundred lashes and have his tono^ue cut out.^ Strano-e 

* Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. liii-lviii. 

' " Qtie esta tierra de Cuba ftiesa la iierra firme al comicnzo de las Indias y 
fin d quien en estas partes quisiere venir de ILspafia por tierra." 

^ Informacion del escribano publico. Fernando Perez de Luna. Coleccion 
de los viages y descubrimientos de los Espagnoles. torn. ii. pp. 143, 149. 



154 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

as it seems, it was Columbus's belief that this watery 
expanse was really the gulf of the Ganges/ 

Departing from the island of Evangelista, Columbus 
returned alone the coast of Cuba to Cabo de Santa 
Cruz, from which he steered to the island of Jamaica. 
After leaving it, he discovered the two islands lying 
off the east coast of Espanola, called respectively by 
the Indians Adamanai and Mona. On the twenty- 
ninth of September, 1494, he returned to Isabela. 

The people of the island of Espanola having 
acquired some knowledge of the Spanish language, 
were able at this time to give Columbus considerable 
information respecting their religion. From his con- 
versations with them he was enabled to write the 
following account of their peculiar image-worship : 
" I could discover neither idolatry nor any sect among 
them, though each one of their kings, who are very 
many, as well in Espanola as on all the other islands 
and continent, has a house apart from the town, in 
which there is nothing but some carved, wooden 
images that are called cemies. There is nothing 
done in these houses but what is for the service of the 
cemies, to which they repair to perform certain cere- 
monies, and pray there, as we do in our churches. 
In these houses they have a handsome, round table, 
made like a dish, on which is some powder, which 
they lay on the heads- of the cemies with a certain 
ceremony. Then through a cane, that has two 
branches, held to their own nostrils they snuff up 

' In August, 1495, Peter Martyr, writing to Cardinal Bernardino, says : 
" Columbus asserts that this regioia is the continent of the Ganges of India, — 
Indiae Gangetidis continentem earn esse plagam contendit Colonus." — Opvs, 
epistolaru Petri Martyris Anglerii Mediolanesis Protonotarij Aplici atque a 
cosilijs reru Indicaru : nuc pmu et natu y mediocri cura excursum : quod q de 
preterstili venustate, nostroru quoque teporum histori loco esse poterit. Copluti 
Anno dni MDXXX. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 155 

this powder. The words they use none of our people 
understand. The powder intoxicates them, and they 
act as if they were drunk. They also give the image 
a name, and I believe it is that of their father or 
grandfather, or both ; for they have more than one, 
and some more than ten, all in memory of their fore- 
fathers, as I have already said. I have heard them 
praise one more than another, and have observed 
them to have more devotion, and show more respect 
to one than another, as we do in processions in time 
of want ; and the people and the caciques boast 
among themselves of having the best cemies. When 
they go to these cemies they shun the Christians, and 
will not permit them to enter these houses. If they 
suspect that they will come, they take their cemies 
and hide them in the woods for fear that they should 
be deprived of them. What is most ridiculous, they 
have the habit of stealing one another's cemies. It 
happened once that the Christians suddenly rushed 
into a house with them, and the cemi cried out, speak- 
ing in their language, which showed that it was arti- 
ficially made. The cemi being hollow, they had at- 
tached a tube to it, which tube extended to a dark 
corner of the house, where a man was concealed with 
boughs and leaves who had spoken through the tube 
the words which the cacique had commanded him. 
The Spaniards, suspecting something of the kind, 
kicked down the cemi, and discovered that which has 
been related. The cacique seeing that his deception 
was known to the Spaniards, earnestly begged them 
not to speak of it to his subjects or to the other 
Indians, because he made them obedient by this arti- 
fice. * * * Three large stones are also in the 
possession of almost all the caciques, which are highly 



156 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

venerated by them and their people. The one they say 
makes the corn and the grain to grow, the second 
helps women in travail, and the third procures rain or 
fair weather, whenever they desire to be benefited in 
any one of these ways. I sent your highnesses three 
of these stones by Antonio de Torres, and have three 
more to bring with me. 

" When these Indians die, they have several ways 
of performing their obsequies. The manner in which 
they bury their caciques is as follows : They open his 
body and dry it at a fire in order to preserve it. Of 
other persons they only take the head. They bury some 
in caves or caverns, and place gourds of water and 
bread at their heads. Others they burn in the house 
where they die, and they do not permit them to 
die naturally, but strangle them at their last gasp. 
This is done to the caciques. Others are turned out 
of the house, and are put in a hamac, which is their 
bed, with bread and water at their heads, and they are 
never visited again. Some who become dangerously 
ill are carried to the cacique, who tells whether they 
are to be strangled or not, and what he commands is 
done. I have taken pains to learn what they believe, 
and whether they know what becomes of them after 
they are dead. This I inquired of Caunaboa, who was 
the principal king of Espanola, an aged man, intelli- 
gent and of much discernment. He and the rest 
answered that they go to a certain valley, which every 
great cacique supposes to be his country, where, they 
affirm, they find their parents and all their ancestors ; 
that they eat, have women, and enjoy themselves in 
pleasures and pastimes. 

" The admiral, having brought the island into a 
peaceable condition, and built the town of Isabela, be- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 157 

sides three forts in different parts of the country, deter- 
mined to return to Spain. * * * He went on 
board, on Thursday, the tenth of March, 1496, with two 
hundred and twenty-five Spaniards and thirty Indians, 
and sailed from Isabela, at daybreak, and steered alono- 
the coast with two caravels, one called Santa Cruz, the 
other La Nina, the same in which he went to discover 
the island of Cuba. * * * Having supplied him- 
self with bread, wood, and water, he set sail on 
Wednesday, the twentieth of April, from the island of 
Guadalupe, with the wind very scant, keeping near 
the latitude of twenty-two degrees, for at that time 
they had not found out the way of running away north 
to catch the southwest winds." ^ 

After sailing a month in the direction of Spain, 
" although there were eight or nine pilots on board the 
two vessels, yet none of them knew where they were ; 
but the admiral was confident that they were only a 
little west of the Azores." 

Columbus, speaking of the movements of his com- 
passes at this time, observes : " This morning the 
Dutch compasses varied, as they formerly did, a point; 
and those of Geneva, which previously agreed with 
them, varied only a little, but after sailing east varied 
more, which is a sign that we are one hundred leagues 
or more west of the Azores, for when we were just one 
hundred there were only a few weeds scattered in the 
sea, and the Dutch needles varied a point, those of 
Geneva cutting the north point, and when we are a 
little farther east-northeast they will alter again." '^ 

^ Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Iviii-lxiv. 

^ Columbus writing from Espanola in October, 1498, says : " Each time 
that I sail from Spain to India, as soon as I have proceeded about a hundred 
nautical miles to the west of the Azores, I perceive an extraordinary alteration 
in the movement of the heavenly bodies, in the temperature of the air, and in 
the character of the sea. I have observed these alterations with especial care, 



158 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. . 

These noticeable differences in the variations of the 
needles, Ferdinand Columbus says, the admiral assigned 
to "the different kinds of loadstones used in making 
them." * * * « jj^ t-i^jg way," he remarks, "they 
continued their voyage, though all the pilots went like 
blind men." Columbus, when near Spain, confidently 
asserted that they would be in sight of the coast on the 
following morning, which proved to be true, "for which 
reason he was looked upon by the seamen as very ex- 
pert and almost prophetic in sea affairs." ^ On Satur- 

and I notice that the mariner's compass, whose declination had hitherto been 
northeast, was now changed to nortliwest ; and when I had crossed this line, as 
if in passing the brow of a hill, I found the ocean covered with such a mass of 
sea-weed, similar to small branches of pine covered with pistachio nuts, that we 
were apprehensive that for want of a sufficiency of water our ships would run upon 
a shoal. Before we reached the line of which I speak, there was no trace of any 
such sea-weed. On the boundary line, one hundred miles west of the Azores, 
the ocean is found still and calm, being scarcely ever moved by a breeze. On 
my passage from the Canary Islands to the parallel of Sierra Leone, we had 
to endure a frightful degree of heat, but as soon as we had crossed the above- 
mentioned line, the climate changed, the air became temperate, and the fresh- 
ness increased the farther we proceeded." 

" It is evident that the extract from the third voyage is but an amplification 
of his first account, and expresses his conviction that west of the Azores, where 
the declination was a little easterly, it changed to the westward, being nearly 
zero at Corvo, and gradually increasing to one point or ii° W. , at a distance of 
300 nautical miles W. of the longitude of Corvo. The position of Rosario on 
the S.E. part of the island of Corvo is, according to the Carta Esf erica de las 
Islas Azores, Madrid, 1855, in latitude 39° 41' and longitude 24° 53' west of 
San Fernando, or in 31° 07' west of Greenwich (according to the* Contt. des 
Temps), 100 leagues or 300 nautical miles west of this longitude would corre- 
spond (in latitude 28°) to 5° 40', and would bring the Columbus line in longitude 
36° 47' W." — An inquiry into the variation of the compass off the Bahama 
Islands at the land fall of Columbus in 1492. By Charles A. Schott. p. 51. 

' Histoire del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixiv. 

" The necessity for attaching a special and well-informed astronomer to 
every great expedition was so generally felt that Queen Isabella wrote to Colum- 
bus on the 5th of September, 1493, ' that although he had shown in his under- 
takings that he knew more than any other living being (cjue ninguno de los naci- 
dos), she counselled him, nevertheless, to take with him Fray Antonio de 
Marchena, as being a learned and skillful astronomer.' Columbus writes in the 
narrative of his fourth voyage that ' there was only one infallible method of 
taking a ship's reckoning, viz., that employed by astronomers. He who under- 
stands it may rest satisfied ; for that which it yields is like unto a prophetic 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 159 

da3^ the eleventh of June, 1496, the caravels arrived 
in the port of Cadiz. 

" The admiral," as soon as he had landed, "began to 
prepare for his journey to Burgos, where he was favor- 
ably received by their catholic majesties, who were 
there celebrating the nuptials of Prince Juan, their son, 
who married Margarita of Austria." 

While Columbus was in Espanola, King Ferdinand 
and Queen Isabella abrogated in part the concessions 
granted him, and issued letters-patent on the tenth of 
April, 1495, permitting any of their subjects to make 
voyages of discovery to the Indies.' Commissioned by 
their highnesses, Amerigo Vespucci'' went with a fleet 
of four vessels, in 1497, to make discoveries. The ac- 

vision {vision profeticd). Our ignorant pilots, when they have lost sight of land 
for several days know not where they are. Tliey would not be able to find the 
countries again which I have discovered. To navigate a ship requires the com- 
pass (compas y arte) and the knowledge or art of the astronomer.' " — Humboldt : 
Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. pp. 671-673. 

* " That any individual among our subjects and natives, that desires, may 
go hereafter (according to our pleasure and will) to discover islands and the 
mainland in the said part of the aforesaid Indies, either to those already discov- 
ered or to any other, and to traffic in them, provided it be not in the aforesaid 
island of Espanola. He may buy from the Christians there or from those who 
may hereafter be there any article and merchandise, provided it be not gold ; 
and this he may and shall do with any suitable ship, provided that at the time 
he leaves our kingdom he depart from the city of Cadiz, and there present him- 
self before our officers. And they must carry thence in each of such vessels one 
or two persons named by our officers. * * * ^^d it is our will and pleasure 
that of all which the said persons shall find in the aforesaid islands and main- 
land they shall have for themselves nine parts, and the tenth shall be our part." 
— Vide Memorials of Columbus ; or a collection of authentic documents of that 
celebrated navigator. London, 1823. pp. 88-95. 

' Amerigo Vespucci, the third son of Anastasio Vespucci and Elizabetta 
Mina, was born in Florence, March 9, 1451. In his boyhood he attended the 
school taught by his uncle, Giorgio Antonio Vespucci, a monk of the order of 
St. Mark. About the year 1493 Vespucci went to Seville, and engaged in the 
business of furnishing and equipping vessels for voyages of discovery. He died 
in Seville, February 22, 1512. — Vide The life and voyages of Americus Vepucius. 
By C. Edwards Lester and Andrew Foster. New York, 1846. Amerigo Ves- 
pucci. Son caractere, ses ecrits (meme les moins authentiques), sa vie, et ses 
navigations, par F. A. de Varnhagen. Lima, 1865. 



i6o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

count of the voyage is contained in a letter written by 
him, in Lisbon, on the fourth of September, i5o4. The 
publication of it made him famous as the discoverer of 
the continent of America. Singular as it is true, the 
palpable discrepancies found in the subsequent versions 
of Vespucci's letter have led many scholars to discredit 
the statements of the intelligent and enterprising Ital- 
ian.* Vespucci thus writes respecting his first voyage : 

" The king, Don Ferdinand of Castile, having 
ordered four ships to discover new lands toward the 
west, I was selected by his highness to go in the fleet 
to aid in the discoveries.'' We departed from the port 
of Cadiz on the tenth day of May, 1497, and took our 
course across the great gulf of the ocean-sea.^ We 
spent eighteen months on the voyage, and discovered 
much main-land and an endless number of islands, 
which were in great part inhabited. As these are not 
spoken of by ancient writers, I think that they had no 
knowledcre of them. * * * 

" We reached a land which we judged to be firm 
land, distant from the Canary Islands about a thousand 
leagues more to the west, within the torrid zone, 
because we found the north pole at an elevation of 
sixteen deofrees above the horizon,* and that we were 
more than seventy-five degrees west of the Canary 
Islands as our instruments showed.^ We anchored 

' Vide Bibliotheca Americana Vetustissima. — A description of works 
relating to America publislied between the years 1492 and 1551. [By Henry 
Harrisse.] New York, 1866. pp. 55-68. 

" " Electa per stia alteza che io fiissi in essa Jlocta per adiutare a discoprire." 

' " Fa}-(imo del p07-to di Calls adi 10 viaggio, 1497." 

* Likely the double altitude, and therefore eight degrees of north latitude, or 
near the mouths of the Orinoco River. 

* " Una terra, cli' la gitidica'mo essere terra ferma : la quale dista dalle 
isole d' Caiiaria piu alio occidenle a circha di mille leghe fuora dello habitato d' 
renio della torrida zona : perche trouva'mo el polo del septentrione al zare fuora 
del suo orizonte 16. gradi, &" piu occide' tale che le isole di Canaria, seed do che 
niostrouajio e iiostri instrumenti 75, gradi" 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. i6i 

our ships a league and a half from the coast. We got 
out our boats, and, having manned and armed them, 
we went on land. 

" Before we went ashore we were greatly delighted 
in seeing many people wandering along the beach. 
We saw that they were naked and that they seemed 
to be frightened when they beheld us, likely, as I sup- 
posed, by seeing us clothed, and of a different stature 
from their own. They retired to a mountain, and we 
could not entice them to hold any intercourse with us, 
notwithstanding we endeavored to induce them by 
signs of peace and friendship. * ^ ^ 

" We sailed to the northwest' in which direction the 
coast extended, always in sight of land, seeing con- 
tinually, during the voyage, people on the shore. After 
sailing two days, we found a secure place for the ships, 
and anchored half a league from the land. * * * The 
natives were somewhat timid, and it was a long time 
before we were able to dispel their fear and induce 
them to come and talk to us. * * * Giving them such 
things as looking-glasses, bells, beads, and other trifles, 
we enticed a number of them to approach and enter 
into friendly relations with us. * * * 

" These people go entirely naked and wear not a 
particle of clothing. They are of a medium size and 
very well proportioned. Their skin is reddish like the 
color of a lion's skin. * * * They do not allow any 
hair to grow on their eyelids and eyebrows, nor on 
any part of their bodies ; only on their heads, for they 
think it very unbecoming. The men and women are 
exceedingly quick in their movements, and are uncon- 

" * Nauiga' mo per el viaestrale, che cbsi sicorreua la casta sempre a uista di 
terra." 

In Italy the different points of the compass were designated by the winds : 
North, tramontana J northeast, ^n'f^ y east, levante ; southeast, jz'wccc' y south, 
ostro ; southwest, libeccio ; -WQst, pone7tie ; northwest, maestro ox viaestrale. 



i62 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

strained in their deportment. They walk and run 
rapidly. The women do not think it a difficult thing 
to run a league or two. '" '^ * These people are excel- 
lent swimmers. The women surpass the men, for we 
have observed them many times swimming unaided, 
fully two leagues out from land. 

** The weapons of these people are bows and 
arrows. These are curiously made. They have no 
iron or any other hard metal on them. They use 
instead the teeth of animals or fish. * * * They 
are expert bowmen, and hit with their arrows what- 
ever they shoot at. The women in some parts of the 
country handle the bow with considerable skill. Their 
other weapons are lances and clubs with elaborately 
carved heads. When they go to make war their wives 
accompany them, not to fight, but to carry provision 
on their backs. Sometimes a woman will convey a 
burden in this manner thirty or forty leagues, which 
the strongest men there cannot do as we have frequent- 
ly observed. * * * 

" These people, although they appear ignorant as 
talkers, are very sagacious and crafty in any matter in 
which they are interested. They do not talk much, 
and when they do, it is in a low tone. * * * Their 
languages differ so much that we found people living 
within the space of a hundred leagues who could not 
understand one another's speech. * * * They 
do not partake of food at appointed times nor in 
such quantities to satisfy them during equal intervals. 
Whenever their appetites demand food, whether in 
the middle of the night or day, it does not matter to 
them, they appease their hunger. * * * They 
take their food from earthen basins made by them, or 
from gourds cut in half. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 163 

" They sleep in certain nets made of cotton, very 
large, suspended in the air. * * * These people 
are clean and neat in their persons, for they are con- 
tinually bathing. * * * They live together in 
common, and make their houses like cottages, which 
are very strongly built with the largest trees and cov- 
ered with palm leaves. * * * We found one 
which contained six hundred persons, and we saw the 
occupants of thirteen houses, who must have numbered 
four thousand souls. New sites for these houses are 
selected every seven or eight years. When we asked 
why they changed the location of their dwellings, they 
said it was because the intense heat of the sun caused 
painful diseases to spread among them when the 
ground about their houses became permeated and foul 
with filth ; which explanation seemed quite reasonable 
to us. 

" The riches of these people are the feathers of birds 
of different colors, ornaments made of fish bones, and 
white and green stones, with which they adorn their 
cheeks, lips, and ears. * * * Some of these people, 
when they inter their dead, place water and food at the 
head of the corpse. * * * jj^ some parts of the 
country there is a very inhuman custom of disposing 
of a person about to die. His relatives carry him into 
a great wood, and, fastening one of their sleeping nets 
to two trees, put him in it. Having swung him in it 
during the day, they, at the approach of night, depart 
to their homes, leaving with him water and food suf- 
ficient for his wants during the succeeding five or six 
days. Should the ill man partake of the provisions 
and recover sufficient strength to enable him to make 
his way back to the village, his relatives honor his re- 
turn with ceremony. * * * 



i64 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

*' For their infirmities they have various kinds of 
medicine very different from those we use. * * * 
I often observed that when a person was stricken 
with fever and grew worse, that they bathed him with 
much cold water from head to foot, and then built a 
great fire around him, and made him walk about the 
inclosed space for an hour or two until he became 
quite fatigued, when they allowed him to sleep. Many 
were cured by this treatment. * * * Blood-letting 
is an art known to them. They do not take blood from 
the arm except in the arm pit. They generally take 
it from the loins or the calf of the leg. * * * They 
have no erain seed nor corn, but use instead the root 
of a tree, from which they make flour, which is very 
o-ood, and which they call luca, and another wdiich they 
call Cdsabi, and another which they call Ig7tami. Very 
little meat is eaten by them except human flesh. 

* * * They devour with fierce avidity their ene- 
mies, whom they kill or capture, whether men or 
women. They thought it very strange when they 

learned that we did not eat the flesh of our enemies. 

* * * 

" We landed in a port ' where we found a village 
built above the water like Venice. About forty-five 
bell-shaped houses were erected here upon very large 
piles, and connected one with the other by draw-bridges. 

* * * When we were descried by the people they 
were seemingly terrified, and to protect themselves 
they immediately drew their bridges and shut them- 
selves up in their houses. While we were observing 
them and wondering at their actions, we beheld about 
twenty- two canoes {canoe) approaching us from the 

' Evidently the Gulf of Coquibacoa, called shortly afterward by the 
Spaniards the Gulf of Venezuela — the Gulf of Little Venice. — Vide Juan de la 
Cosa's map in the cover-pocket. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 165 

direction of the sea. These canoes are boats which 
they use, and are made from a single tree. The people 
in them rowed toward our boats, no little astonished 
at our forms and clothing. As they kept at some 
distance from us, we made signs to induce them to 
come nearer. Failing to assure them of our peaceful 
intentions, and seeing that they would not approach any 
nearer, we rowed toward them. But they did not 
remain where they were, but rowed to the land, where, 
by signs, they intimated that we should wait for a short 
time until they returned. 

" They hastened away to a mountain, but did not 
stay there any length of time. Returning they brought 
with them sixteen young girls, and, entering their 
canoes, rowed to us, and placed four girls in each of 
our boats. We were much surprised at this. * * * 
They then kept their canoes alongside of our boats, 
and we were led to believe that these people were thus 
manifesting their friendship. Not suspecting any thing 
different, we observed a great number of people swim- 
ming toward us from the houses. Then some old 
women appeared at the doors of the houses shrieking 
and pulling their hair as if in great distress. Suspect- 
ing some treachery, we took up our arms. All at once 
the girls in our boats plunged into the sea, and the 
people in the canoes rowed away, shooting their arrows 
at us. Those who swam to us carried lances with 
them concealed under the water. Discovering their 
treachery, we not only defended ourselves, but vigor- 
ously attacked them. We upset in our boats many of 
their canoes and killed many people. In a short time 
those who were not hurt left their canoes and swam to 
the shore. They had about fifteen or twenty killed 
and wounded, and we five slightly wounded. * * * 



i66 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

We took two girls and two men prisoners. When we 
entered their houses we found only two old women and 
a sick man. We took from the houses many things of 
little value, but did not burn the houses from humane 
motives. 



* * * 



" This country is thickly inhabited and contains 
a great many rivers. The animals in it are quite 
different from those in our country, except the lions, 
panthers, stags, hogs, goats, and deer, and some 
of these are somewhat different from ours in form. 
* * * But how can I describe the birds here, which 
are so many and of so many kinds, and the color of 
their feathers so different, that the sight of them 
amazes one. 

" The country is very attractive and fruitful, and 
covered with very great woods and forests, in which 
the trees are always green, for they never lose their 
foliage. There are unnumbered fruits very different 
from those in our country. This land lies within the 
limits of the torrid zone, below the line describing the 
tropic of Cancer, where the pole is elevated twenty- 
three degrees above the horizon, at the end of the 
second climate.' * * *' In this country we made 
a baptismal font, and baptized many of the people, who 
called us caribi, meaning men of great wisdom. 

*' The country is called Lariab by the natives. We 
sailed along its coast always in sight of land and 
ran on the whole course toward the northwest eight 
hundred and seventy leagues.^ * * * ^^Q found 

' " Quest a terra sta dentro del la tomda zona giuntamente, o di basso del 
paralello, che descriue el tropica di cancer : done aha el polo dello orizonte 23 
gradi net fine del secondo cly7na." 

' " Tanto che corremo dessa 870 leghe tutta uerso el tnaestrale." 
The end of the second climate was at 8° 25' north latitude. Ptolemy, the 
geographer, divided the surface of the globe, from the equator to the sixty- 
sixth parallel, into zones, called climates, to represent the successive increase of 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 167 

gold in some places but not much. The discovery 
of the country and the knowledge that gold was 
in it satisfied us. * * ■'' 

" On our return we sailed toward the sea going 
between the north and east, and after seven days we 
reached some islands. * * * ^^Q landed on one 
of them, where we found many people, who called the 
island Iti [Hayti ?]. * * * We set sail for Spain 
with two hundred and twenty-two slave-prisoners, 
and arrived at the port of Cadiz on the fifteenth of 
October, 1498,' where we were well received, and 
sold our slaves. This is what happened to me in this 
my first voyage that may be considered note- 
worthy." "^ 

" Shortly after the departure of the fleet with 
which Vespucci went to the New World, Columbus 
complained to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella 
that the permission given by them in 1496 to those 
who desired to go on voyages of discovery toward the 
west was prejudicial to the privileges previously 
granted him by their Spanish majesties. The latter 
therefore revoked their letters -patent of the tenth of 
April, 1495, on the second of June, 1497, declaring 
that it should "have no force nor effect at any time, 
or in any manner whatever, so as to be prejudicial to 
the said admiral, and to whatever we have thus granted 
and confirmed to him." ^ 

fifteen minutes in the length of a mid-summer day. The first climate extended 
to 4° 15', on the north side of the equator ; the second, from 4° 15' to 8° 25'; 
and the third, to 12° 30'. 

^" JVoi alsi/acemo ue/a p, Spagna con 222 prigioni scJiiaui : df giugnetno 
nel porta di Calls adl 15 doclobre 1498." 

" Lettera di Amerigo Vespucci delle isole nuouamente trouate in quattro 
suoi viaggi. Primo viaggio. 

Vide Amerigo Vespucci. Varnhagen. pp. 34-48. Bibliotheca Americana 
Vetustissima. [Harrisse.] pp. 55-68, 149, 150. 

* Vide Memorials of Columbus, pp. 96, 97. 



i68 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

•' The fitting out of the fleet [for Columbus's third 
voyage to the Indies] was delayed much longer than 
was necessary through the negligence and bad man- 
agement of the king's officers, and particularly that 
of Don Juan Rodriguez de Fonseca, archdeacon of 
Seville. Hence it happened that Don Juan, who was 
afterward bishop of Burgos, was, from that time on- 
ward, a bitter enemy to the admiral and his affairs, 
and was the chief person among those who brought 
him into disgrace with their catholic majesties.' 
* * * ^\iQ admiral made his preparations for the 
voyage with all possible diligence, and on the thirtieth 
of May, 1498, set sail .from the bay of San Lucar de 
Berrameda, with six ships, freighted with provisions 
and other necessaries for the relief of the planters in 
Espanola and the peopling of that island." == 

On Thursday, the fifth of July, Columbus steered 
westward from the islands of Cape Verd, and on the 
last day of the month altered his course and stood to 
the north. " One day about noon as he was thus sail- 
ing [off the coast of Venezuela, South America, north 
of the mouths of the Orinoco river], Alonso Perez 
Nirando, a sailor of the town of Huelva, while going 
up to the round-top, saw the peaks of three mountains 
to the westward, distant about fifteen leagues. Not 
long afterward they beheld land extending northeast- 
wardly as far as they could see. When they had 
given thanks to God and said the Salve Rcgina and 
other prayers used by seamen in times of distress or 
joy, the admiral called the discovered island, la Isla de 

' At this time, says Ferdinand Columbus, "in order that Don Diego, my 
brother, and I, who had served as pages to Prince Juan, who was now dead, 
might not suffer by his delays or be absent from court until the time of his de- 
parture, he [the admiral] sent us, on the second of November, 1497, from 
Seville, to serve as pages to her majesty, Queen Isabella." 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixv. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 169 

Trinidad (the island of the Trinity), for he had thought 
of giving this name to the first land they should find 
on the voyage, and now God had graciously granted 
him the si^ht of three mountains near tos^ether as has 
been mentioned. The fleet stood directly west to reach 
a point of land on the south side of the island, and then 
coasted along that side of it until the anchors were 
cast, five leagues beyond the cape, which Columbus 
called Punta de la Galera (Point of the Galley), which 
name was suggested by a rock on the headland, re- 
sembling, at a distance, a galley under sail. On the 
following morning, Wednesday, Columbus continued 
his course westward, for there was only one cask of 
water on board his ship, and one on each of the other 
vessels, and at the last anchorage no convenient place 
had been found to obtain more. At the next headland, 
which he called Punta de la Playa (Point of the Strand), 
the ships anchored and the crews went to a small 
brook and obtained a supply of fresh water. No town 
or people were seen here, although they had observed 
many houses and towns along the coast. * * * 
This day, which was the first of August, when the ves- 
sels were sailing between Punta de la Galera and Punta 
de la Playa, they .discovered the continent, distant 
about twenty-five leagues as they guessed. Inasmuch 
as they thought it was another island, they called it Isla 
Santa (Holy Island)." 

When the ships anchored at the southwestern ex- 
tremity of the island of Trinidad, which point of land 
Columbus called Punta del Arenal, " a large canoe," 
the admiral writes, " came from the eastward, contain- 
ing twenty-four men, all in the prime of life, fully armed 
with bows, arrows, and shields. As I have said, they were 
all young, well proportioned, and not dark black, but 



I70 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

whiter than any other Indians that I had seen. * * * 
They wore their hair long and straight, cut in the 
Spanish fashion. Their heads were encircled with 
cotton scarfs elaborately colored, like the head-dresses 
of the Moors. Some wore these scarfs round their 
bodies as a covering in the place of breeches. When 
I reached Punta del Arenal I found that the island of 
Trinidad was separated from the land of Gracia {la 
tierra de Graciaf by a strait two leagues wide. * * * 
" I discovered beyond the point which I called 
Punta de la Aguda, one of the most attractive countries 
in the world, and very densely populated. * * * 
Some of the natives immediately came in canoes to 
the ship to request me in the name of their king to 
come on land. When they saw that I paid no atten- 
tion to them, they came in great numbers in their 
canoes to the ship, many of them wearing pieces of 
oold on their breasts, and some of them bracelets of 
pearls on their arms. When I saw these I was ex- 
ceedingly pleased, and I made many inquiries to learn 
where the people found them. They informed me 
that they were obtained in the neighborhood and also 
at a place north of the country. * * * Desiring 
to get some pearls like those I had seen, I sent some 
men ashore for that purpose. * * * They related 
that when the boats reached the shore, two chiefs, 
whom they took for father and son, came to them from 
the throng of the people and conducted them to a very 
large house, at two springs, not round and tent-shaped 
as the other houses. In this house were many seats, 
on which they seated our men and themselves. They 

"Although, according to Ferdinand Columbus's statement, his father 
called the firm land (or rather an island) at the mouths of the Orinoco River, 
Isla Santa (Holy Island), Columbus really called the continent. La Tierra de 
Gracia (Land of Grace). 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 171 

then caused bread to be brought with many kinds of 
fruit and various wines, both white and red, not made 
from grapes but apparently from different fruits. * * * 
The men were congregated at one end of the buildino- 
and the women at the other. Great vexation was felt 
by both parties because they could not understand 
each other's language, for they each desired to ask 
questions concerning their respective countries." 

Columbus, describing that part of South America 
which he called Gracia, now known as Venezuela, and 
also referring to the Orinoco River pouring its flood 
of fresh water into the Gulf of Paria, which he called 
Golfo de las Perlas (Gulf of Pearls), remarks : " I think 
that if the mentioned river does not flow from the 
earthly paradise that»it comes from a vast extent of 
land in the south, of which nothing hitherto has been 
known." 

In the letter containing this information respecting 
South America the admiral speaks of sending to King 
Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, to whom the letter was 
addressed, a map of the country {la pintura, de la 
tier r a). ' 

The channel between the island of Trinidad and the 
land of Gracia (which the natives called Paria), Colum- 
bus called la Boca de la Sierpe (the mouth of the Ser- 
pent). The fleet then sailed from the Gulf of Paria 
through its northern outlet, which Columbus called la 
Boca del Drago (the mouth of the Dragon), and passed 
by the cape which he called Cabo de las Conchas and 
the island which he named Margarita. "Although," as 
Ferdinand Columbus remarks, " the admiral saw that 

* Letter from the island of Espanola. — Vide Select letters of Christopher 
Columbus, with other original documents relating to his four voyages to the 
New World. Translated and edited by R. H. Major. London, 1S70. Sec- 
ond edition. Hakluyt Society pub. 



172 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the country of Paria extended much farther westward, 
nevertheless he says that from that time forward he 
could not give as good a description of it as he wished 
on account of his eyes being too much inflamed by 
constant watching. Therefore he was compelled to 
obtain the most of his information concerning it from 
the sailors and pilots." ^ 

When Columbus arrived, at the end of August, at 
the island of Espafiola, where he intended to recruit 
his failing health, he found the colonists rebelling 
against the authority of his brother Bartolome, whom 
he had left there as adelantado, or lieutenant-gov- 
ernor, when he sailed for Spain in 1496. Columbus 
at once took steps to put an end to the sedition. 
Meanwhile complaints were sent to their Spanish maj- 
esties, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, who, to 
adjust the differences existing between the two con- 
tending factions, sent Francisco de Bobadilla to Es- 
panola to discover the cause of the insurrection and to 
punish by fine and imprisonment those whom he should 
find culpable. Summoning the admiral to appear 
before him at San Domingo, he, as soon as Columbus 
arrived, ordered him to be put in irons and to be con- 
fined in the fortress. Having drawn up certain charges 
against Columbus, he sent him in chains to Spain. 
About the middle of November, i5oo, the vessel 
arrived at Cadiz. When the news of Columbus's hu- 
miliation at the hands of Bobadilla became known, the 
people everywhere censured the latter for the unwar- 
ranted abasement of the distinguished discoverer. The 
king and queen immediately sent orders for Columbus 
to be set at liberty, and afterward received him with 
many gracious acknowledgments of his important 

' Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixv-lxxiii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 173 

services, and publicly declared that Bobadilla should 
account to them for his ill treatment.' 

When the information contained in Columbus's 
letter respecting the large and valuable pearls possessed 
by the people of Paria became known in Spain a num- 
ber of capitalists immediately fitted out a fleet to go to 
the Land of Pearls. The command of the vessels was 
given to Alonso de Hojeda, who had accompanied 
Columbus on his second voyage. The cosmographer, 
Juan de la Cosa, and Amerigo Vespucci went with 
Hojeda. Vespucci, in his account of the voyage, says : 
" We departed from the port of Cadiz, three ships in 
company, on the sixteenth day of May, 1499. * * * 
In forty-four days we arrived at a new land, which we 
judged to be main-land, and the continuation of that 
previously mentioned. It lay in the torrid zone south 
of the equator, where the south pole is elevated five 
degrees." They sailed from their first place of anchor- 
age and ran southeastwardly along the coast forty 
leao-ues. The stronsf currents runnino; from the south- 
east to the northwest hindered the progress of the 
vessels so much that the -explorers determined to 
chano-e their course and to sail to the northwest. Fol- 
lowing the trend of the coast in this direction, they, 
after sailing some time, reached a beautiful bay, at the 
entrance of which was a large island. About eighty 
leagues beyond this harbor they entered another, 
where they went on land and obtained one hundred 
and fifty pearls and some gold from the friendly natives. 
At another place the inhabitants of the country "had 
their cheeks stuffed with a green herb which they were 
continually chewing as animals chew their cud, so that 
they were scarcely able to speak. Hanging from the 

' Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixxiv-lxxxvii. 



174 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

neck of each native were two dried gourd-shells, one 
filled with the herb which the people had in their 
mouths, the other containing a white meal like chalk 
dust. The natives carried small sticks which they 
wetted at intervals in their mouths and then put them 
into the meal and then into the gourds containing the 
herb." Then they again filled their cheeks with the 
herb. 

At another place the explorers remained forty- 
seven days, where they obtained " one hundred and 
nineteen marks of pearls" in exchange for some 
small trifles. From a native, Vespucci obtained an 
oyster containing one hundred and thirty pearls. The 
fleet sailed along the coast to where it was " fifteen 
degrees north of the equator." Thence the explorers 
steered for Espanola to obtain provisions. Departing 
from the island on the twenty-second of July, i5oo, 
they sailed for Spain, and arrived at the port of Cadiz 
on the eighth of September.' 

When Kins: Ferdinand and Oueen Isabella heard 
that the Portuguese had reached India by sailing 
around Africa, they commissioned Columbus to 
explore the western coast of Paria, where he con- 
ceived a navigable strait could be found throuofh 
which the vessels of Spain might sail to Cathay. Four 
caravels composed the fleet with which he sailed 
from Cadiz on the ninth of May, i5o2. On the fifteenth 
of June, the vessels came in sight of one of the Car- 

'Lettera di Amerigo Vespucci. Secundo viaggio. — F/<A' Historic del S. 
D, Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixxxiv. Coleccion de los viages y descubrimien- 
tos, Navarrete. torn. iii. pp. 4-9 ; 543-545. 

In December, 1499, Vincente Yanez Pinzon sailed from Palos, and came 
in sight of the coast of Brazil at a point of land which he called Cabo Santa 
Maria de la Consolacion. The same month Diego de Lepe sailed from Palos 
and made discoveries south of this cape. Rodrigo de Bastidas sailed from 
Cadiz in October, 1500, and explored the coast of Paria westward to the isthmus 
of Darien. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 175 

ibbean islands called by the natives Mantinino. 
Thence they sailed to the island of Dominica, and 
thence to Espanola. Departing, on the fourteenth 
of July, from the port of Brazil, on the south side of 
the island of Espanola, Columbus sailed toward the 
Bay of Honduras, eastward of which he imagined was 
a strait through which he might sail to the Indian 
Ocean and reach Cathay. " We came to certain 
islands," says Ferdinand Columbus, who had accom- 
panied his father to the New World, " where we went 
ashore on the largest, called Guanaia, whence those 
that make sea-charts took occasion to call all those 
islands Guanaia, which are almost twelve leagues from 
the continent, near the province now called Honduras, 
though the admiral then called it Cabo Casinas." 
While the fleet was anchored in one of the roadsteads 
of the group of islands called Guanaia, a large log- boat 
crowded with Indians and filled with certain commod- 
ities arrived there. Describing the capture of this 
highly valued prize, Ferdinand Columbus remarks : 
" Fortune so ordered it that a canoe, as long as a galley 
and eight feet wide, all of one tree, and like the other 
boats in shape, put in there, loaded with commodities 
brought from the country toward the west and bound 
for Nueva Espafia.^ In the middle of it was a covering 
like an awning, made of palm leaves, resembling those 
of the Venetian gondolas, which protected all beneath 
it, that neither rain nor sea-water could wet the goods. 
Under the awning were the women and children. 
Although there were twenty-five men in the canoe, 
they had not the courage to defend themselves against 
those in our boats who pursued them. The canoe 
being taken without any opposition it was brought to 

* Nueva Espaiia (New Spain), was the name which the Spaniards gave to 
Yucatan and Mexico when they first explored these countries. 



1/6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the adniiral's caravel. * * * H'e commanded that 
such articles should be taken as were thoucfht to be 
the most desirable and valuable, as quilts, shirts of 
cotton without sleeves, curiously made and dyed with 
different colors, apron- cloths, and large sheets in which 
the Indian women in the canoe wrapped themselves as 
the Moorish women, formerly in Granada, were in the 
habit of doing. There were also long wooden swords, 
with grooved edges on each side, in which sharp pieces 
of flint were compactly fastened with thread and a^ 
bituminous substance, and these cut naked men as 
if they were made of steel ; also copper hatchets to cut 
wood, like those of stone which the other Indians use ; 
also bells of the same metal, and dishes and crucibles 
to melt it in. For food they had such roots and grain 
as the people of Espaiiola eat, and a kind of liquor 
made of maize, like the English beer, and an abun- 
dance of cacao-nuts, which in New Spain pass for 
money, which they seemed to value very much, for 
when they were brought aboard among the other 
goods, I observed that when any of these nuts fell, the 
Indians all stooped to pick them up, as if they were 
thines of value. * * '^' Notwithstandino- the admiral 
had heard so much from those in the canoe concerning 
the great wealth, politeness, and ingenuity of the people 
westward toward New Spain, yet thinking that he 
could sail to those countries lying to the leeward, when 
he thought fit from Cuba, he would not go that way at 
this time, but adhered to his intention of discovering 
a strait in the continent to pass into the South Sea,^ 
by which he could sail to the countries that produce 
spice. Therefore he resolved to sail eastward toward 
Veraeua and Nombre de Dios, where he imacrined the 

* Mar del Sur, the early Spanish name for the Pacific Ocean. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 177 

strait to be. * * * He was deceived in the under- 
taking, for he did not conceive it to be an isthmus, or 
a narrow neck of land, as it really was, but a small bay 
extending from sea to sea." ' 

On the coast of Veragua, now the isthmus of 
Panama or Darien, Columbus found the ruins of an 
immense building covered with tables of stranee hiero- 
glyphics and unique reliefs. These vestiges of an an- 
cient civilization made so profound an Impression on 
the mind of the admiral that he selected a curiously 
elaborated piece of the wall, and brought it away in 
one of his caravels. " This was the first place, in the 
Indies," says Ferdinand Columbus," where they saw any 
sign of an edifice. It was a great mass of wall of im- 
agery seemingly composed of lime and stone. The ad- 
miral ordered a piece of it to be brought away to show 
the evidence of its antiquity."" 

On the fifth of January, i5o3, they cast anchor near 
a river which the Indians called Yebra, and the ad- 
miral Belem or Bethlem. Westward of it was a river 
which the natives called Verasfua. Columbus, havino- 
determined to build a town at this point, began, about 
the end of February, to erect " houses upon the river 
of Belem, about a cannon-shot from its mouth, within a 
trench, on the right bank of the river, at the mouth 
of which there is a little hill. Besides these houses, 
which were all of timber and covered with the leaves of 
palm trees growing along the shore, another large 
house was built to serve as a store-house and magazine, 
in which were stored several cannon, some powder, 
provisions, and other necessaries for the use of the 
planters. * * * 

" The customs of the Indians here are somewhat 

' Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. l:cxxviii-xc. 
" Historie del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xcii. 



178 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

similar to those of the natives of Espanola and the 
neighboring islands ; but the people of Veragua and 
its neighborhood, when they talk to one another and 
eat turn their backs, and are always chewing an herb, 
which, as we think," says Ferdinand Columbus, " makes 
their teeth to decay and rot. Their food is fish ; these 
they take with nets and hooks. * * * They have 
an abundance of maize, which is a kind of grain grow- 
ing in an ear, or hard head like millet, of which they 
make white and red wine, as beer is made in England, 
and mix their spice with it as pleases their palates. It 
has a pleasant taste like a sharp, lively wine." ^ 

" In Cariay and the adjacent country," says Co- 
lumbus, " there are great enchanters of a very dreadful 
kind. * * * J saw there, built on a mountain, a 
sepulcher as large as a house and elaborately sculp- 
tured. The body lay uncovered with the face down- 
ward. The people told me of other very excellent 
works of art. * * * They said that there were 
great mines of copper in the country, of which metal 
they make hatchets and other manufactured articles, 
both cast and soldered. They also make forges from 
it, and all the apparatus of goldsmiths, and also cru- 
cibles. The inhabitants wear clothes. I saw in that 
province large sheets of cotton elaborately and skill- 
fully made, and others very delicately colored with 
pencils. They informed me that in the interior, 
towards Cathay, that the people there have them inter- 
woven with gold. * * * One thing I dare declare, 
for there are many to attest it, that in the land of Ve- 
ragua I saw more indications of gold in the two first 
days [of my stay there] than I had found during four 
years in Espanola." * 

* Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xciv-xcvi. 

* Vide Select letters of Christopher Columbus. Major. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 



179 



The Spaniards, however, were soon attacked by the 
natives, and were in such distressing circumstances 
that Columbus was compelled to abandon his purpose 
of leaving a colony on this part of the continent and to 
take his men on board the ships and to return to Es- 
panola. Speaking of the return-voyage, Ferdinand 
Columbus writes : "Thus rejoicing that we were all 
together again, we sailed along the coast eastward. 
Although all the pilots were of the opinion that we 
might return to San Domingo by standing away to 
the north, nevertheless the admiral and his brother 
knew that it was requisite to run a considerable dis- 
tance along this coast before they steered across the 
gulf that is between the continent and Espanola, at 
which our men were displeased, thinking that the ad- 
miral designed to sail directly for Spain, whereas he 
neither had provisions nor were his ships fit for the 
voyage.' But as he knew best what was to be done, 

* Columbus, in his letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, from 
Jamaica, dated July 7, 1503, says : " This is the account I have to give of my 
voyage. The men who accompanied me vv^ere a hundred and fifty in number, 
among whom were many considered to be pilots and good sailors, but none of 
them can explain whither I went nor whence I came. The explanation is 
simply this : I sailed from a point above the port of Brazil, and while I was in 
Espanola, a storm prevented me from following my intended route, for I was 
compelled to go wherever the wind drove me. At the same time I became very 
sick, and there was no one who had sailed in these parts before. However, 
after some days the wind and sea became tranquil, but there were rapid currents. 
I put into a harbor at the island called Isla de las Bocas, and afterward steered 
for Tierra-firme. However, it is impossible to give a correct account of all our 
movements, for I was carried away by the current for many days without 
seeing land. 

" I ascertained, notwithstanding, by the compass and by observation, that I 
was running parallel with the coast of Tierra-firme. No one could tell under 
what part of the heavens we were, nor at what time I changed my course for 
the island of Espanola. The pilots thought we had arrived at the island of St. 
John, whereas it was the land of Mango, four hundred leagues westward of the 
place mentioned by them. Let them answer and say if they know where 
Veragua is situated. I assert that they can give no other information than that 
they went to lands where there was plenty of gold, and this they can surely 
affirm ; but they do not know the way to return there for it. They would be 



i8o "DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

we held on our course until we came to Porto Bello, 
where we were obliged to leave the ship Biscaina, on 
account of its leaky condition, being all worm-eaten 
through and through. Steering along the coast, we 
passed by the port we called Retrete, and a country 
near which there were many small islands, which the 
admiral called Las Barbas, but the Indians and pilots 
call that the territory of the cacique Pocorosa. We 
held on this course ten more leagues to the last land 
we saw of the continent, called Marmora, and on Mon- 
day, the first of May, i5o3, we stood to the north. 

* * * Although all the pilots said we should be 
east of the Caribbee islands, yet the admiral feared we 
should not make Espanola, which proved to be true. 

* * * We reached an Indian town on the coast of 
Cuba, called Mataia, where, having obtained some re- 
freshment, we sailed for Jamaica."' 

On his return to the island of Jamaica, in June, 
1 503, Columbus, describing his voyage along the 
isthmus of Darien, wrote to King Ferdinand and 
Queen Isabella, saying : " On the thirteenth of May 
I reached the province of Mango, which is contiguous 
to that of Cathay, and thence I steered for the island of 

obliged to go on a voyage of discovery as if they had never been there before. 
There is a way of reckoning [ihe course and distance sailed] derived from 
astronomy which is trustworthy and safe, and a sufficient guide to any one who 
understands it. This resembles prophetic vision. 

"The vessels of India do not sail except with the wind abaft. This is done, 
not because they are badly built or clumsy, but because the strong currents in 
those parts, together with the wind, make it impracticable for them to sail with 
the bowline {con bolina), for in one day they would lose as much way as they 
might have made in seven. For a similar reason I could not use caravels, 
even though they were Portuguese lateens. This is the reason for their [the 
vessels of India] not sailing except with a favorable wind, and they will some- 
times remain in port, waiting for one, seven or eight months at a time, nor is 
this particularly strange, for the same occurs often in Spain." — FzoV Select letters 
of Christopher Columbus. Major. 

* Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. xcvn-c. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. i8i 

Espanola." ' Peter Martyr =" also seems to have held 
the opinion that Columbus's explorations were along- the 
continent of Asia. Writing in i5io, the first decade 
of the New World, he remarks : " The opinion of 
Christopher Columbus respecting the magnitude of the 
sphere and the opinions of the ancients concerning the 
under-navigatlon of the world seem to be adverse. 
Nevertheless the parrots and many other things 
brought from there indicate that the islands savor only 
of India, eitherbeing near it or else of the same nature." ^ 
With this fourth voyage, the zealous and en- 
thusiastic navisrator ended his life-work. On the 
twelfth of September, 1 5o4, Columbus for the last time 

* Letter from Jamaica, July 7, 1503. 

^ Pietro Martive d' Anghiera, commonly called Peter Martyr, a descendant 
of an illustrious Milanese family originally from Anghiera, on the eastern shore 
of Lake Maggiore, in upper Italy, was born in 1455 at Arona, on the western 
border of the lake. He was carried to the baptismal font by a friar of the 
Dominican order and christened with the name of Peter, that of the martyr of 
1252, whose feast-day falls on the twenty-ninth of April. In 1477, he went to 
Rome to fit himself for the priesthood. There he became acquainted with the 
Castilian embassador, the Count of Tendilla, and was induced to return with him 
to Spain, in 1487. From King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella he received a 
number of honoring commissions. He followed the royal standard through 
two campaigns. In 1501 he was sent to Egypt to conciliate the sultan. He 
returned to Spain in August, 1502. The mission to Egypt furnished him with 
some of the material for his Latin work, entitled : "P. Martyris Angli Medio- 
lanensis opera Legatio Babylonica, Oceani decas, poemata, epigrammata." 
In 1505 he was made prior of the cathedral of Granada. Pope Leo X. 
honored him with the office of apostolical prothonotary. As a royal counsellor 
in the affairs of the Indies he acquired a very extensive range of information 
respecting the early voyages of discovery made to the New World. His work : 
" De Orbe Novo Petri Martyris ab Angleria Mediolanensis protonotarij Cesaris 
senatoris decades," contains valuable historical matter. His letters, eight hun- 
dred and more, in the collection entitled " Opus epistolarum," the first dated 
January r, 1488, the last May, 1525, throw considerable light upon the numerous 
facts relating to the voyages of Columbus and other navigators of his time. 
His "Legatio Babylonica" was first printed at Seville (Hispalis) in 1511 ; his 
" De Orbe Novo " and letters at Alcala (Complutum) in 1530. He died in 1525, 
and was entombed in the cathedral of Grenada. 

^ Quanuis huius Christophori Coloni opinio, magnitudini sphaere (&^ opinion, 
veterum de siibnauigabili orbe, videatiir adiiersari, psitiaci tamen inde absportatii 
atque alia mnUa, vel propinqtiitate vel nahira solum Jndictim has insulas sapere 
indicant." — De Orbe Novo decades, dec. i. cap. i. 



i82 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

set sail from the attractive field of his numerous ex- 
plorations and arrived at San Lucar, on the seventh of 
November, broken down in health, aged, and the vic- 
tim of many unjust accusations and bitter disappoint- 
ments. Two years afterward, on the twentieth of May, 
i5o6, he died at Valladolid, being about seventy years 
old, leaving to another the discovery, by the way of the 
west, of a navigable route to the remote coast of 
Cathay. 

As intended by him, when he set sail on his first 
vogage, Columbus afterward made a map on which 
he delineated " all the sea and the lands of the ocean- 
sea " [del mar Oceamts) discovered by him.' Although 
the admiral's chart is lost, there are several maps ex- 
tant, which, in part, represent the islands of Juana, 
Jamaica, Espanola, and the smaller ones, as he evidently 
had outlined them on his new sailing chart {carta 
nueva de navegar\ A map of the world, in the Estense 
library, at Modena, made between the years i5oi and 
i5o4,'' and the map of the New World (iabvla terre 
nove), in the edition of Ptolemy's geography, printed 
in i5i3, at Strasburg,^ exhibit the islands, discovered 
by Columbus on his first voyage, and of \vhich he 
speaks in his journal of 1492 and 1493. The high 
latitudes In which he placed the Rio de Mares and 
other rivers of Juana, when he made his discoveries 

' ' ' Tengo prcpSsito de hacer carta nueva de navegar, en la ciial sihiard ioda 
la mar y tierras del mar Ocianus en sus propios higaj-es dchajo sit vienio." — Co- 
leccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. torn. i. p. 3. 

' Vide Geographic du moyen age, etudiee par Joachim Lelewel. Atlas. 
Bruxelles, 1850. Orbis typus universalis, 1501-1504. Hydrographia charta 
marina Portugalensium. Planche xliii. p. xiii. 

^ Claudii Ptolemei viri Alexandrini mathematicae disciplinae philosophi 
doctissimi geographiae opus novissima traductione e Graecorum archetypis 
castigatissime pressum : cseteris ante lucubratorum multo praestantius. * * * 
Anno Christ! Opt. Max. mdxiii. Marcii xii. Pressus hie Ptolemreus Argen- 
tinae vigilantissima castigatione, industriaque Joannis Schotti urbis indigenae. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 183 

" toward the north," are designated on these maps. 
On the Ptolemy map the name c doffun de abril at the 
southeast point of Cuba appears to designate the same 
cape as that of c de fvndabril on the map of the world 
made by Johann Ruysch, the German cartographer, con- 
tained in the edition of Ptolemy's geography, printed 
at Rome in i5o8.' Both of these mispelled names 
are evidently anomalous forms of the Spanish desig- 
nation, C de Fuenterabia. The names on Ruysch's 
representation of the island of Cuba correspond more 
closely to the Spanish orthography of the designations 
given by Columbus to the places he visited than those 
which are inscribed on the two maps previously 
mentioned." 

The earliest map extant representing the territory 
discovered in the western hemisphere is a map of the 
world drafted by the Spanish cartographer, Juan de la 
Cosa.3 It was found by Baron de Walckenaer in the 
possession of a dealer in old books and wares, from 
whom he bought it for a small sum of money. Baron 
von Humboldt shortly afterward made its discovery 
known in his notable work on the geography of the 

' Vide Map : Universalior cogniti orbis tabula ex recentibus confecta 
observationibus : in cover-pocket. 

The somewhat similar inscriptions on the maps of 1501-1504 and 1513 : 
ITec terra cum adiacentiF htsulis inuenta est per Columbu ianuensem ex inandato 
Regis Castelle." — This land with the adjacent islands was discovered by Colum- 
bus, a Genoese, by the command of the king of Spain, — are authoritative decla- 
rations that the admiral was the discoverer of the represented territory. 

^ Ruysch has printed on his map these words on a scroll, on the west side 
of Cuba : " hvc vsq naves ferdinadi regis hispanie pvenervt," — As far as 
this place the ships of Ferdinand, king of Spain, come. 

"Juan de la Cosa, in 1493, accompanied Columbus, on his second voyage, 
as a cartographer. In 1499 he explored the coast of Paria with Alonso 
de Hojeda and Amerigo Vespucci. In November, 1509, he again sailed with 
Hojeda to South America, and heroically met his death while defending him- 
self, when surrounded by a party of assailing savages, in the village of Yur- 
baco, in the province called Castilla del Oro by the Spaniards. 



iS4 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

new continent/ When the library of Baron de Walcke- 
naer was sold, in Paris, in 1853, La Cosa's map was 
purchased for the queen of Spain for four thousand 
and twenty francs. It is now in the Naval museum, 
in Madrid.' The famous map-maker drafted the whole 
world, as then known, on an ox-hide, five feet nine 
inches long by three feet wide, on a scale of fifteen 
Spanish leagues to a degree. The map is attractively 
colored and brightened with gold. It may rightly be 
called the geographical frontispiece of the history of 
the discovery of America.^ 

The map bears the inscription ** yuan de la cosa la 
fizo end puerto de S : mj"' en ano de. i^ooJ' — ^Juan de 
la Cosa made it in the port of Santa Maria in the year 
1 5oo. A picture of St. Christopher bearing the Christ- 
child across the water ornaments the space above the in- 
scription.3 Most prominent of the islands of the " Mar 
Oceanus " delineated on the map are Cuba, Habacoa,'' 
and La Espanola. The coast of South America, as far 

* Examen critique de 1' histoire de la geographic du nouveau continent et 
des progres de 1' astronomic nautique aux quinzieme et seizieme siecles. Par 
Alexandre de Humboldt. Paris, 1S36. tome troisieme. pp. 167, 174, 183. 

' Vide Notes on Columbus. [By Henry Harrisse.] New York, 1866. 
Jean et Sebastien Cabot, leur origine et leurs voyages. Par Henri Harrisse. 
Paris, 1881. pp. 52, 103, 156. 

' FiVt? Historical and geographical notes, 1453-1530. By Henr)^ Stevens. 
New Haven, iS6g. p. 11. 

^St. Christopher, it is said, after he was baptized by the bishop of Antioch, 
took up his abode in a desert, near a rapid stream, over which he carried trav- 
ellers on his back. While bearing, one day, a child across the swollen flood, 
he discovered that it was the Christ, hence his name Chrisiophorus, the 
Christ-bearer. 

Speaking of his father's name, Ferdinand Columbus remarks: "As St. 
Christopher is reported to have received that name because he carried Christ 
over the deep waters with great danger to himself, whence came the name of 
Christopher, and as he conveyed over the people whom no other could have 
carried, so Admiral Christophorus Colonus, imploring the assistance of Christ 
in that dangerous voyage, went over safely himself and his company, that those 
Indian nations might become citizens and inhabitants of the church triumphant 
in heaven." — Historic del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. i. 

* Abaco is one of the Bahama islands. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 185 

as it had been explored, is well represented by the pains- 
taking map-maker." 

La Cosa, having seen a copy of the map made by 
Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot), to display the fields of 
the English discoveries of 1497 and 1498, attempted 
to show in what part of the New World they were. 
As outlined by him, the land explored by Cabot 
trends eastwardly from the sea discovered for the 
English {inar descuhierta por inglesc), to the Cape of 
England (Cavo de Inglaterra). As La Cosa had 
nothing else than his imagination to guide him in deline- 
atinof the coast of North America between the field 
of the English discoveries and South America, his ex- 
tension of the main-land from the one to the other has 
no .geographical significance. Unable to determine 
definitely the position and extent of the territory of the 
New World, La Cosa projected it as accurately as his 
information respecting the explored parts of its sinuous 
coast gave him knowledge. Ignorant of the limits of 
the New Land he honorably darkens that part which 
might be deemed its cartographic development with 
several shades of meanincrless colors.^ 

o 

' La Cosa's map, on three large sheets of paper, is contained in Les monu- 
ments de la geographic ou recueil d' anciennes cartes europeennes et orientales 
* * * publics en fac-simile de la grandeur des originaux par M. Jomard, 
memhre de 1' institut de France, Paris. Imprimerie de Beau, a Saint-Ger- 
main-en-Laye. 

^ Vide Section of La Cosa's map in the cover-pocket. 



CHAPTER VI. 

1 496- 1 498. 

The notable part which England took in searching 
for a navigable passage to Cathay, by exploring the sea 
toward the west, was incited by the success attending 
the explorations of Columbus in the New World. For 
it is said that when the news reached England that the 
Genoese seaman had discovered the coasts of India 
there was great talk in the court of King Henry VII., 
and that men declared with much admiration that it 
was more divine than human to sail toward the west 
to go to the East where spices grow.^ The bold pro- 
jector, who obtained for England the distinguished 
honor of being the second European power to enter 
the western hemisphere with her ships, was Giovanni 
Caboto (John Caboto), a Venetian,^ who had lived a 
number of years in London. With confessed con- 
fidence he explained to King Henry and his learned 
counsellors the grounds of his belief that the eastern 
coast of Asia could be reached by sailing in a direct 
westward course from England, and how this course 
would be a shorter way than the one taken by Colum- 
bus. He proposed to undertake the voyage at his 

* Raccolta di navigation! e viaggi. Ramusio. vol. i. fol. 374. 

' Little is known concerning the early history of Giovanni Caboto. In the 
archives of Venice is the record of his naturalization, dated March 28, 1476, 
which shows that he had lived in that city more than fifteen years before the 
privilege of citizenship was granted to him. Archives of Venice : Senate Terra 
1473-1477. tom. vii. p. 109. 

1S6 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 187 

own expense should the king grant him the necessary 
license. 

These overtures of Caboto appear to have been 
made about the beginning of the year 1496. Ruy 
Gonzales de Puebla, the Spanish ambassador, residing 
in England, having learned what Caboto had proposed 
to King Henry, at once communicated the information 
to their majesties, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella 
of Spain. Their royal highnesses, in a letter to their 
representative at the English court, dated at Tortosa, 
the twenty-eighth of March, 1496, thus refer to what 
he had written them : 

" You say that a person like Colon has come there 
to place before the king of England another under- 
taking similar to that of the Indies, without prejudice 
to Spain or Portugal. If in this way he helps him, he 
will be as free to go to the Indies as we were. We 
believe that this undertaking is thrown in the way of 
the king of England by the king of France in order 
to withdraw him from his other affairs. See that the 
king" of England be not deceived in this or in a similar 
matter. The French will endeavor as best they can 
to lead him into such enterprises, inasmuch as they are 
very uncertain, and are not easily prosecuted. Like- 
wise see that those * * * ' he is not able to 
undertake this thing without prejudice to us and the 
king of Portugal." ^ 

On the fifth of March, 1496, King Henry VII. 
complied with Caboto's request as set forth in the 
following petition : 

' An effaced part of the dispatch. 

^ Archives of Simancas. Capitulaciones con Inglaterra. Legajo ii. 
fol. 16. 

Calendar of letters, dispatches, and state papers relating to the negotiations 
between England and Spain, preserved in the archives of Simancas and else- 
where. Edited by G. A. Bergenroth. London, 1S62. vol. i. p. 89. 



i88 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" To the kyng our souvereigne lord 

" Please it your highnes of. your moste noble and 
haboundant grace to graunt unto John Cabotto, citezen 
of Venes, Lewes, Sebestyan and Sancto his sonneys 
your gracious lettres patentes under your grete seale 
in due forme to be made according to the tenour. here- 
after ensuyng. And they shall during their ly ves pray 
to god for the prosperous continuance of your moste 
noble and royale astate long to enduer." ^ 

The letters-patent granted to Giovanni Caboto and 
his sons, Lodovico, Sebastiano, and Sanctus, to his and 
their heirs and deputies, commissioned them to sail, 
with five ships of any burden, under the banners, flags, 
and ensigns of England, to all parts, regions and gulfs 
of the eastern, the western, and the northern seas, in 
order to seek, discover, and explore whatever islands, 
countries, regions, or provinces of the heathen and of 
the infidels, in whatever part of the world they were 
situate, which were then unknown to all Christians. 
As set forth in the document, the cost and expense of 
the expedition were to be defrayed by Caboto and his 
sons.'' 

With this commission Giovanni Caboto set sail 
from the port of Bristol, in the spring of 1497, with two 
ships, one of which was named the Matthew. ^ Sailing 
westward from Eno-Jand he reached a land which he 
believed to be that of Cathay, where he planted the 
flag of England and that of Venice. Having explored 
the coast of the country for three hundred leagues, he 
returned to England, where the news of his discoveries 
was enthusiastically received by the interested people. 

* Public Records. Bill number 51. 

'Hakluyt. vol. iii. pp. 4, 5. Rymer's Foedera. London, 1727. fols. 
595. 596. 

' The history and antiquities of the city of Bristol. By William Barrett. 
1789. p. 172. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 189 

A brief description of this voyage is contained in a 
a letter written by Lorenzo Pasqualigo, in London, on 
the twenty-third of August, 1497, to his brothers, 
Alvise and Francesco, residing in Venice : 

" The Venetian, our countryman, who went with a 
ship from Bristol to search for a new island, is re- 
turned, and says that seven hundred leagues from here 
he discovered firm land {^Terra fenna), the territory of 
the Grand Khan. He coasted for three hundred 
leagues and landed ; saw no human beings, but he has 
brought here to the king certain snares which had 
been set to catch game, and a needle for making nets ; 
he also found some felled trees, by which he judged 
there were inhabitants. He returned to his ship in 
doubt, and he was three months on the voyage, and on 
his return saw two islands to starboard, but would not 
land, time being precious, as he was short of provisions. 
This has greatly pleased the king. He [Caboto] says 
that the tides are slack there and do not flow as they 
do here. 

" The king has promised him, in the spring, ten 
ships, armed to his order, and at his request has con- 
ceded him all the prisoners, except those confined for 
high treason, to man his fleet. The king has also 
given him money with which he may amuse himself 
until that time, and he is now in Bristol with his sons 
and his wife, who is also a Venetian.' His name is 
Juam Talbot and he is called the great admiral. 
Great honor is paid him ; he dresses in silk, and 
these English run after him like insane people, so 
that he can enlist as many of them as he pleases, 
and a number of our own rogues besides. 

" The discoverer of these places planted on this 

* In the privy-purse accounts of King Henry VII. is this entry : " Aug. 
10, 1497. To hym that found the new Isle, lo £,." 



190 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. • 

newly found land a large cross, with one flag- of Eng- 
land and another of Saint Mark, on account of his 
being a Venetian, so that our banner has floated very- 
far afield." ' 

Raimondo di Soncino, the minister of the duke 
of Milan, at the court of England, in a letter, written 
on the twenty-fourth of August, 1497, also speaks of 
the return of Caboto, saying that he " found two very 
large and fertile islands, having likewise discovered 
the Seven Cities, four hundred leagues from England, 
on the western passage. This next spring his majesty 
intends to send him with fifteen or twenty ships." ^ 

The discovery of the two islands mentioned by Son- 
cino is spoken of in two inscriptions placed on a large 
map of the world, preserved in the National library in 
Paris. The Spanish inscription reads : " This land 
was discovered by loan Caboto, a Venetian, and by 
Sebastian Caboto, his son, in the year of the birth of 
our Saviour, Jesus Christ, m.cccc. xcilii [m.cccc. xcvii?], 
on the twenty-fourth of June, in the morning, to which 
they gave the name. Prima tierra vista (First land 
seen), and to a large island, which is by the said land, 
they gave the name of Sant Joan (Saint John), because 
it was discovered the same day." ^ 

i 

* Diarii di Marin Sanuto. torn. i. fol. 374. MS. in Marciana library, 
Venice. 

Calendar of state papers and manuscripts relating to English affairs in the 
archives and collections of Venice and other libraries of northern Italy. Edited 
by Ravvdon Brown. London, 1864. vol. ii. p. 262. 

"Sforza archives, Milan. Calendar of state papers. London, 1864. vol. 
ii. p. 260. 

' " E sta tierra fue descubierta por loan Caboto Veneciano, y Sebastian Caboto 
su hijo, anno del nascimierte de nuestro Saluador Icsu Christo de m. cccc. 
xciiii. a neinte y quairo de lunio por la mannami, ala qual pusieron nobre 
prima tierra tiista, y a una isla grade que esta par de la dha tierra, le pusieron 
nombre sdnt loan, por auer sido descubierta el mismo dia." — Tabla primera. 
No. 8. 

The Latin inscription, which seems to be a translation of the Spanish one, 




opy of a part of Ihc map of lll( 



.rkl ill tbc Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, known as the Cabot map of 1544. (Tin 
larger than this copy.) 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 191 

The map, on the margin of which this inscription 
appears, seems to be a copy of one made by Sebastiano 
Caboto, in 1 644, if the following statement of another 
Spanish inscription placed on the chart be true : " Se- 
bastian Caboto, captain and chief pilot of his sacred 
christian catholic majesty, the emperor, Charles V. of 
that name, and king, our sovereign, made this large 
planisphere, in the year of the birth of our Saviour, 
Jesus Christ, 1 544, drawn with degrees of latitude and 
longitude, and with winds like a marine chart, copying 
in part the maps of Ptolemy, and in part those of the 
modern discoverers, Spaniards as well as Portuguese, 
and in part those made by his father and by him." ' 

As will be seen on the map, the inscription Prima 
tierra uista is placed opposite the tract of land on the 
forty-eighth parallel of north latitude, now known as 
Cape Breton Island. Evidently to obviate a miscon- 
ception respecting the situation of the land first de- 
scribed, the words prima uista (first seen) are inscribed 
on the peninsula to which the former inscription di- 
rects the eye. On this map also is seen a large island, 

reads : " Terram hanc olim nobis claiisam, aperuit, loannes Cabotus Veneius, 
necno Sebastiamts Cabotus eiits fiUus, anno ab orbe redempto 1494. die uero 24. 
luly. hora 5. sub dilticiclo, qua terra primu tdsa??t appellarut &= Insula qiianda 
magna ei opposita. Insula diui loannis nominarut, qtiippe quae solenni die festo 
diui loannis aperta ftcit." — Tabula prima. No. 8. 

"John Caboto, a Venetian, and also Sebastian Caboto, his son, made the 
land accessible which formerly was closed to us, in the 3'ear of the redemption 
of the world 1494 [1497 ? J, on the twenty-fourth day of July [June ?] at five 
o'clock in the morning, which land he called the first seen, priiittim visum, and 
a large island opposite to it, he named the island of Saint John, because it was 
found on the day of the feast of Saint John." 

* ''Sebastian Caboto capitan, y piloto mayor de la S. c. c. m.. del luiperador 
don Carlos quinto deste nombre, y Rey miesfro semior hizo eita Jigtira extensa 
en pla7io, anno del nasciem" de nro saluador lesu Christo de m.d. xliiii. amtos, 
tirada por grades de latitud y longitud con sus nientos como carta de marear, 
iimiaizdo en parte al Ptolomeo, y en parte alos modei-nos dcscohridores, asi Espan- 
noles como Portugueses, y parte por su padre, y por el descubierto." — Retulo del 
auctor. 



192 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

lying northwest of the land of Prima Vista, bearing the 
name, Y^ de S. Juan (Island of St. John). 

In a letter written in London, on the eighteenth of 
December, 1497, by Raimondo di Soncino to the duke 
of Milan, a very interesting account is given of Caboto's 
explorations in the western hemisphere : ' Perhaps, 
your excellency in the press of so much business will 
not be disturbed to learn that his majesty [King 
Henry VII.] has gained a part of Asia without a 
stroke of the sword. In this kingdom is a popular 
Venetian called Messer Joanne Caboto, a man of con- 
siderable abihty, most skillful in navigation, who having 
seen the most serene kings, first him of Portugal, then 
him of Spain, that they had occupied unknown islands, 
thought to make a similar acquisition for his majesty 
[the king of England]. And having obtained the 
royal privileges which gave him the use of the land 
found by him, provided the right of possession was re- 
served to the crown, he departed in a little ship, from 
the port of Bristol, In the western part of this kingdom, 
with eighteen persons who placed their fortunes with 
him. Passing Ibernia [Ireland] more to the west and 
then ascending toward the north, he besran to navio^ate 
the eastern part of the ocean. Leaving (for some 
days) the north to the right hand, and having wan- 
dered enough he came at last to firm land {terra 
fcrma) where he planted the royal banner, took pos- 
session for his highness, made certain marks and 
returned. 

"The said Messer Joanne, as he Is a foreigner and 
poor, would not be believed, if his partners, who are 
all Englishmen and from Bristol, did not testify to the 
truth of what he tells. This Messer Joanne has the 
representation of the world on a map {in una carta). 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 193 

and also on a globe {171 una sphera soli da), which he 
has made, and he shows by them where he arrived, 
and going toward the East, has passed much of the 
country of Tanais. 

" And they say that the land is fertile and temperate, 
and think that red-wood [el brasilio) grows there, and 
the silks, and they affirm that there the sea is full of 
fish that can be taken not only with nets, but with fish- 
ing-baskets, a stone being placed in the basket to sink 
it in the water, and this, I have said, is told by the said 
Messer Joanne. 

" And the said Englishmen, his partners, say that 
that they can bring so many fish that this kingdom 
will have no more business with Islanda (Iceland), and 
that from that country there will be a very great trade in 
the fish which the)^ call stock-fish {stochfissi). But Messer 
Joanne has his thoughts directed to a greater under- 
dertaking, for he thinks of going, after this place is oc- 
cupied, along the coast farther toward the East until 
he is opposite the island called Cipango, situate in the 
equinoctial region, where he believes all the spices 
of the world grow, and where there are also gems. 
And he says that he was once at Mecca, where from 
remote countries spices are carried by caravans, and 
that those carrying them being asked where those 
spices grew, said they did not know, but that they 
came with other merchandise from remote countries to 
their home by other caravans, and that the same infor- 
mation was repeated by those v/ho brought the spices 
in turn to them. And he argues that if the oriental 
people tell to those of the south that these things are 
brought from places remote from them, and thus from 
hand to hand, presupposing the rotundity of the earth, 
it follows that the last carry to the northern, toward 



194 DISCOVERIES OF AMEPvICA. 

the west. And he tells this in a way that makes it 
quite plain to me and I believe it. And what is a 
greater thing, his majesty, who is learned and not 
prodigal, places confidence in what he says, and since 
his return, provides well for him, as this Messer Joanne 
tells me. 

" And in the spring he says that his majesty will arm 
some ships and will give him all the criminals so that 
he may go to this country and plant a colony there. 
And in this way he hopes to make London a greater 
place for spices than Alexandria. And the principals 
of the business are citizens of Bristol, great mariners 
that now know where to go. They say that the voy- 
age will not take more than fifteen days, if fortune 
favors them after leaving Ibernia. I have talked with a 
Burgundian, a companion of Messer Joanne, who af- 
firms the same, and who is willing to go, since the ad- 
miral {almirante), as Messer Joanne is already styled, 
has given him an island, and has also given another to 
his barber, a Genoese, and they regard the two as 
counts, and my lord, the admiral, the chief And I be- 
lieve that some poor Italian friars will go on the voy- 
age, who have the promise of being bishops. And I, 
being a friend of the admiral, if I wished to go, could 
have an archbishopric." ' 

In order to secure the king's permission to go on 
the proposed voyage, Giovanni Caboto again addressed 
a petition to King Henry VII., requesting his majesty 
to grant him letters-patent to fit out six ships, in any 
of the ports of England, and " theym convey and lede 
to the Londe [land] and Isles of late founde " by him. 
The request was granted, and the king, on the third 
day of February, 1498, in the thirteenth year of his 

' Archives of Milan. Annuario scientifico. Milan, 1866. p. 700. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 195 

reign, ^ licensed him to take six ships as he desired, and 
" all suche maisters,^ maryners, pages, and subjects" as 
would willingly " goo and pass with hym in the same 
shippes to the seid Londe or Iles."^ 

Having obtained his letters-patent, Giovanni Ca- 
boto, in a short time, had five ships manned and pro- 
visioned for one year. Early in the summer of 1498 
he set sail to return to the field of his first explorations. 
Pedro de Ayala,'^ in a letter dated London, July 2 5, 
1498, addressed to their Spanish majesties, King Fer- 
dinand and Oueen Isabella, writes as follows concerninof 
Caboto's second voyage : " I think your highnesses have 
already heard that the king of England has equipped 
a fleet in order to discover certain islands and firm 
land {tie7^rafirme), which they have told were discov- 
ered by certain persons of Bristol, who fitted out some 
ships during the past year for the same purpose. I 
have seen the map which the discoverer has made, 
who is another Genoese like Colon, and who has been 
in Seville and in Lisbon soliciting aid for this under- 
taking. The people of Bristol have, for the last seven 
years, sent every year two, three, or four caravels to 
search for the island of Brazil [Red- wood], and the 
Seven Cities, according to the fancy of this Genoese. 
The king determined to send the fleet, because in the 
past year they brought certain news of having found 

' The thirteenth year of the reign of Henry VII. began on the twenty-fifth 
of August, 1497. 

" Henry VII., 1498, March 22. To Lanslot Thirkill of London, upon 
a Prest for his shipp going towards the new Ilande, £. 20. — Item delivered to 
Launcelot Thirkill going towards the new He in Prest, £. 20. — April i. Item 
to Thomas Bradley and Louncelot Thirkill going to the new Isle, £. 30. — To 
John Carter going to the newe He in reward 40. s." — Excerpta historica. 
London, 1S31. pp. 116, 117. 

* Public Records. Bill number 6. Hakluyt. vol. iii. p. 5. Memoir of 
Sebastian Cabot. [Richard Biddle.] Phila. 1831. pp. 74, 75. 

* Pedro de Ayala, the Spanish Ambassador, was sent to London in 1497. 



196 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

land. The fleet consists of five ships that carried pro- 
vision for one year. The news has come that the 
vessel in which Friar Buil ' went has returned to Ire- 
land in great distress, the ship being leaky. The Gen- 
oese has continued his voyage. I have seen the course 
he steered and the extent of it, and I think that what 
they have found or what they are in search of, is what 
your highnesses already possess, for it is the cape 
which was given to your highnesses by the convention 
with Portugal. It is expected that they will return 
toward September. I write this because the king of 
England has spoken to me on the subject, and he 
thinks that your highnesses will be greatly interested 
in it. I think the land is not farther distant than four 
hundred leagues. I told him that in my opinion the 
land was already in the possession of your highnesses, 
and though I gave my reasons he did not like them. 
I believe that your highnesses are already informed of 
this matter, and I do not now send the chart or map of 
the world which that man has made, for in my opinion 
it is false, since it makes it appear as if the land in 
question were not the said islands." "" 

The history of Giovanni Caboto terminates with 
the information contained in Pedro de Ayala's letter. 
Nothing definite is known respecting his death. 

From the ambiguous and contradictory information 
furnished by contemporaneous writers concerning the 
voyages of Sebastiano Caboto, it appears that he sailed 
to the New Land, either in the years 1497 and 1498, 
with his father — or in 1499, in command of a fleet of 
vessels fitted out in the port of Bristol, England. For 

" Bernardo Buil, a Benedictine monk, who accompanied Columbus on his 
second voyage, in 1493, and returned to Spain in 1494. 

'Archives of Simancas. Tratado con Inglaterra. Leg. ii. Calendar of 
letters, dispatches, and state papers. London, 1862. vol. i. pp. 176, 177. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 197 

it is said that, in the fourteenth year of King Henry's 
reign/ Sebastiano Caboto set sail on a voyage to an 
island where he knew he could obtain many things of 
value : " This year one Sebastian Gabato a genoas 
Sonne borne in Bristow professing himselfe to be 
experte in knowledge of the circute of the worlde 
and Ilandes of the same as by his Charts and other 
reasonable demonstrations he shewed, caused the 
king to man and victual a shippe at Bristow to 
search for an Ilande whiche he knewe to be replen- 
ished with rich commodities : in the ship diverse 
merchaiintes of London adventured smal stockes, 
and in the company of this shippe, sayled out of 
Bristow three or foure smal shippes fraught with 
slight and grosse wares as course cloth, caps, laces, 
points." "" 

Peter Martyr, speaking of the voyage, says : " He 
fitted out two ships in England at his own expense, 
and with three hundred men steered toward the north, 
until, in July, he found vast icebergs floating in the 
sea and almost perpetual daylight, though on the land 
the snow and ice had melted. Therefore he was com- 
pelled to turn the sails, as he says, and to go toward 
the west, and yet he held to the south, the shore bend- 
ing, that he almost reached the degree of the latitude 
of the strait of Hercules, and proceeded so far to the 
west that he may have had the island of Cuba on his 

'The fourteenth year of the reign of Henry VII. began August 2i, 149S, 
and ended August 21, 1499. 

* The Chronicle of England, from Brute vnto this present yeare of Christ 
1580. By John Stow. London, 1580. p. 862. 

Robert Fabian, from whose work Stow obtained the information concern- 
ing Caboto's voyage, was the author of the " Chronicle of England and France," 
or, as he called it, "The concordance of stories." He was born in London 
about the year 1450. Besides being an alderman of the city, he was one of its 
sheriffs m 1493. He died in London in 1512, and was buried in St. Michael's, 
Cornhill. 



198 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

left hand, being almost to its degree of longitude.^ 
Steering along this coast, which he called Bacallaos, 
he found, as he says, the currents of the sea running 
toward the west, but gently, as those found by the 
Spaniards navigating, in the southern waters. It is 
not only likely to be true, but it may be accepted as a 
fact, that between these regions [Bacallaos and the 
West Indies] there is a great space still unexplored 
that offers a way [to the East], where the water flows 
from east to west. These currents, I think, are made 
to flow round the earth by the impulsion of the heavens, 
and are not thrown up and swallowed again by De- 
morgorgon breathing.^ Perhaps, they may be caused, 
as it is said, by influx and reflux. 

** Cabotto himself called these regions Baccallaos 
{Baccallaos Cabottus ipse terras illas appellavit), because 
in the sea there he found great shoals of certain large 
fish resembling tunnies, which name was given them by 
the natives.3 These fish were so numerous that some- 

' " Qitare coacitcs ftiit, tiii ait, vela vertere et occidentem iseqti tetcnditque 
tamen ad meridiem, liltore sese inctw-jante , tit Hcrculei freii latitttdine fe7-} 
gradtts a:quarit ad occidentemqtie profcctiis iantum est, tit Cubam instilam b, 
IcBua longitiidine gradutiin pene parent habiierit." 

The Strait of Gibralter (Strait of Hercules) is in 36° north latitude. 

' Demorgorgon, the spirit of the earth. 

' The name bacallaos, or baccallaos, is evidently derived from the Gjeek word 
f3aHi]Xo?, a large, lusty fellow. Names similar to this appellation were used 
by the Greeks as early as the third century of the Christian era. Athenseus, in 
his work entitled AsiTtvO?oq)lGTai (the learned men at supper), presents 
this information respecting certain fish: " They say that they are usually caught 
in couples, and that one is always found following at the tail of the other ; and, 
therefore, from the fact of one following close on the tail of the other, some 
ancients call men who are intemperate and libidinous by the same name. * * * 
Euthydemus, in his work on Cured Fish, says : ' Some call this fish [the cod] 
the bacchus, and some the gelaria, and some the hake.'" — The Deipnosophists 
or banquet of the learned of Athenzeus. Literally translated by C. D. Yonge. 
London, 1854. vol. ii. pp. 442, 496. 

Great numbers of the common cod [tnorrhtia vulgaris] are annually caught 
on the fishing-banks off the coast of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. This fish 
is very prolific. It is said that eight millions of eggs have been counted in the 
roe of a female cod. Cod are sometimes caught that weigh ninety pounds. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 199 

times they retarded the progress of his ships. He 
found the people of these regions covered only with 
skins, but the natives were not wholly destitute of 
reason. He also relates that in these regions there is 
a great number of bears which eat fish. They plunge 
into the water where they see a shoal of fish and fasten 
their claws between the scales of the fish, and in this 
way convey them to the shore, where they devour 
them. The hunger of the bears being appeased, 
they do not annoy men. He declares further that in 
many places he saw copper {prichalcuni) among the 
natives."^ 

Gomara, the Spanish historian, says : " But he who 
made this land more widely known was Sebastian 
Gaboto, a Venetian.^ He equipped two ships in Eng- 
land (he having been taken there when he was little), 
{do tratava desde peqzieno,) at the cost of King Henry 
VII., who desired the trade in spices the same as the 
king of Portugal. Others say at his own expense, 
and that he promised King Henry to go by the north 
to Cathay, and to bring spices there in less time than 
the Portuguese from the south. He also went to see 
if there was any land in the Indies on which a colony 

* De Orbe Novo decades, dec. iii. cap. vi. 

' The birthplace of Sebastian Caboto's is not definitely known. Richard 
Eden, in his translation of the Decades of the New World of Peter Martyr, 
says that Sebastiano Caboto told hira that he was born at Bristol, England ; and 
Gasparo Contarini, the embassador of Charles V., avers that he informed him 
that Venice was his birthplace. It is conjectured that he was born about the 
year 1476. On the twentieth of October, 1512, Sebastiano Caboto was ap- 
pointed a sea-captain by King Ferdinand of Spain. In the service of Charles 
v., he sailed on the fifth of April, 1526, to search for a navigable strait along 
the coast of South America. On this voyage, in 1527, he explored the Rio de 
la Plata. In July, 1530, he returned to Spain. In 1548 he went to England, 
where he died some time after the year 1557. — Vide The Decades of the Newe 
Worlde or West India, Translated into Englysshe by Richarde Eden. Lon- 
doni, 1555. f. 255. Dispatch of Contarini from Valladolid, December 31, 1522. 
MS. Marciana library, Venice, cod. loig. cart. 2S1-283, Jean et Sebastien 
Cabot. Harrisse. pp. 109-133. 



200 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

might be settled. He took three hundred men and 
steered a course by the way of Iceland, above the 
cape of Labrador, going as far as fifty-eight degrees, 
though he says much farther, stating that in the month 
of July it was so extremely cold and that there were so 
many icebergs floating in the sea, that he did not dare 
to go farther. * * * So Caboto, having inspected 
the cold and strange country, changed his course to 
the west, and returning again to the Baccalaos {los 
Baccalaos), he followed the coast as far as thirty-eight 
degrees, and then returned to England." ' 

Galvano, the Portuguese historian, says that when 
Sebastiano Caboto returned from the north, he dimin- 
ished "the altitude till he came to thirty-eight degrees, 
and from there returned to England. Others will have 
it that he went as far as the point of Florida, which is 
in twenty-five degrees." " 

In the discourse of Sir Humphrey Gilbert respect- 
ing "a new passage to Cataia," it is said: "Further- 
more, Sebastian Cabota by his personall experience, 
and trauell, hath set foorth, and described this passage, 
in his Charts, whiche are yet to be seene in the 
Queenes Maiesties priuie Gallerie, at Whitehall, who 
was sent to make this discoverie by King Henrie the 
seauenth, and entered the same fret: affirming, that he 
sailed very far westward, with a quater of the North, 

^ Primera y segunda parte de la historia general de las Indias con todo el 
descubrimiento y cosas notables que han acaecido dende que se ganaron ata et 
aiio de 1551. [Por Francisco Lopez de Gomara.] ^aragoga, 1552. primera 
parte, cap. de los Bacallaos. 

Francisco Lopez de Gomara was born at Seville in 15 10. Hernando 
Cortes, on his return to Spain after the conquest of Mexico, made Gomara his 
chaplain. Gomara's General history of the Indies (La historia general de las 
India';), and the Conquest of Mexico and New Spain (Laconquista de Mexico, 
y de la Nueua Espana), were first published at Saragossa, (,^arag09a). Spam, m 
1552. Gomara died about the year 1560. 

' Tratado, que compQs o nobre & notauel capitao Antonio GaluSo. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 201 

Oil the north side of Terra de Labrador' the eleuenth 
of June, vntil he came to the septentrional latitude 
of 6jy2 degrees and finding the seas still open 
said that he might, and would have gone to Cataia, if 
the mutinieofthe Maister and Mariners had not ben." =" 

It is further related that in the eighteenth year of 
the reign of King Henry VII. ,3 three Indians were 
brought to England from the islands discovered by 
Sebastiano Caboto : " Thys yeare, were brought vnto 
the Kyng three men taken in the new founde Hands, 
by Sebastian Gabato, before named in Anno 1468, 
these men were clothed in Beastes skinnes, and eate 
raw Flesh, but spake such a language as no man could 
vnderstand them, of the which three men, two of them 
were seene in the Kings Court at Westminster two 
yeares after, clothed, like Englishmen, and could not 
bee discerned from Englishmen." ■* 

The field of the discoveries of Giovanni Caboto, 
represented on the map made by Juan de la Cosa, in 
1 5oo, and on the one of 1 544, in the National library, in 
Paris, was apparently the Atlantic coast of Cape Breton 
Island s and of Nova Scotia. The part of the penin- 
sula designated Prima Vista, (First Seen,) on the map 
of 1 544, appears to be the same as that which on La 
Cosa's chart is denominated Cavo de Inglaterra (Cape 
of England).. The coast, from Cape Breton southwest- 

1 Xerra de Lavrador, Portuguese : Land of the Farmer. 

' A Discovrse of a Discouerie for a new Passage to Cataia. Written by 
Sir Hvmfrey Gilbert, Knight. Imprinted at London by Henry Middleton for 
Richarde Ihones. 1576. sig. D iii. 

^ The eighteenth year of the reign of King Henry VII. began August 21, 
1502, and ended August 21, 1503. 

* Chronicle of England. Stow. p. 875. 

* Cape Breton Island lies between 45° 27' and 47° 41' north latitude. Its 
greatest length is one hundred miles, and its greatest breadth eighty-five miles. 
The island is isolated from the mainland by the Strait of Canso, which is 
twenty-one miles long, and from one mile to one and a half in width. Cape 
North is about sixty miles from Cape Ray, Newfoundland. 



202 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

ward to the Bay of Fundy, the sea discovered for the 
EngHsh {mar descubierta por inglese),^ is dehneated by 
La Cosa with approximate accuracy. 

The information given by Peter Martyr, Gomara, 
and Galvano respecting the voyage of Sebastiano Ca- 
boto, makes the fact evident that the latter sailed north- 
westwardly along the coast of Labrador almost to the 
sixtieth parallel, where he was so far to the west 
" that he had the island of Cuba on his left hand " and 
had nearly reached the longitude of the island. On 
his return, after running along the coast of Baccallaos, 
he sailed southward, but too far east of the mainland 
to see its coast, and reached the latitude of the thirty- 
eighth parallel ; whence he steered for England. If 
Sebastiano Caboto had explored any part of the present 
coast of the United States he certainly would have 
imparted some information respecting its physical 
features, its inhabitants, its flora and fauna, to the in- 
quisitive chroniclers of his age. The descriptions of 
the regions explored by him only apply to the more 
northern parts of the continent, represented on the 
map of 1 544, to which territory was given the name 
La Tierra de los Bacallaos (Land of Codfish). ^ On 
the planisphere of 1544, the following statement is in- 

'The representation of the coast of Cape Breton Island and of Nova Scotia 
as trending eastward and westward, as delineated on La Cosa's map, evidently 
exemplifies the incorrect conjecture made by Giovanni Caboto respecting the 
situation of the first land seen by him. Columbus's delineation of the island of 
Cuba, as having an east coast that extended far toward the north, was a similar 
personal assumption which afterward was found to be false. 

* " These regi5s are cauled Terra Florida and Regio Baccalearum or Bac- 
challaos of the which you may reade sumwhal in this booke in the vyage of the 
woorthy owldeman yet lyuing Sebastiane Cabote, in the vi. booke of tlie thyrde 
Decade. But Cabote touched only in the north corner and most barbarous parte 
hereof, from wliense he was repulsed witli Ise in the monelh of July. Neuer the 
lesse, the west and south partes of these regions haue sence byn better searched 
by other." — The Decades of the Newe Worlde or West India. Eden. The 
preface to the reader, ci. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 203 

scribed concerning the country discovered by Sebas- 
tiano Caboto. " The people wear clothes made of the 
skins of animals, use bows and arrows, lances, darts, 
knob-headed clubs, and slings in their wars. The 
country is very sterile. In it are many white bears, 
and deer as large as horses, and many other animals 
of the same class ; also immense numbers offish such 
as soles, salmon, very large lings, a yard in length, and 
many other kinds of fish, but the most numerous are 
those called bacallaos. In this country there are fal- 
cons as black as ravens, eagles, partridges, linnets, and 
many other birds of different kinds." ^ 

" This much concerning Sebastiano Gabotes dis- 
couerie may suffice for a present cast," says Hakluyt, 
" but shortly, God willing, shall come out in print all 
his owne mappes and discourses, drawne and written 
by himselfe, which are in the custodie of the worship- 
full master Willia Worthington, one of her Maiesties 
Pensioners who (because so worthie monumentes 
shoulde not be buried in perpetuall obliuion) is very 
willing to suffer them to be ouerseene and published in 
as good order as may bee, to the encouragement and 
benefite of our Countriemen." " The English collector 
also remarks that " the map of Sebastiano Caboto cut 
by Clement Adams, concerning the discovery of the 
the West Indies, * * * [is] to be seene in her 

*" La genie della andan uestidos de pieles de animales, tcsan en sus giterras 
arcos, y Jlechas, lancas, y dardos, y unas porras de palo, y Jiondas. Es tierra muy 
steril, ay en ella mtichos orsos plancos, y cieritos mtiy grades coino catiallos, y 
otras muchas animales, y semeianiemete ay pescadoinfinito, sollos ; sal/noes lengu. 
ados, muy grandes de tiara en largo y otras miichas diuersidades de pescados, y la 
mayor viultitud dellos se dizen baccallaos, y asi mismo ay en la dha tierra Hal- 
cones prietos como cueruos Aguillas, Perdices, Pardillas, y otras mtichas aues 
de diuersas maneras." — Tabla primera. No. 8. 

* William Worthington was joined to Sebastiano Caboto in the pension given 
by Philip and Mary, May 29, 1557. Rymer. vol. xvi. p. 466. Divers voyages 
touching the discouerie of America. 



204 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Maiesties priuie gallerie at Westminster, and in many 
other anchient merchants houses." ^ 

Although three hundred years have passed since 
Hakluyt promised the early publication of Sebastian© 
Caboto's maps and discourses, they are still covered 
with the pall of oblivion.^ 

' Navigations, voyages, and discoveries, p. 6. 

^Richard Ilakluyt was born at Yatton, England, in 1553. He took a 
remarkable interest in geography and navigation, and for a time held a pro- 
fessor's chair of these branches at Oxford. In 15S2 his " Divers voyages touch- 
ing the discouerie of America and Hands adiacent vnto the same," was published 
in London. He was also the author of " A particular discourse concerninge the 
greate necessitie and manif olde comodyties that are like to growe to this Realme 
of England by the Westerne discoueries lately attempted, written in the year 
1584." In 1589, he published his celebrated work, entitled : The principal 
navigations, voiages, and discoveries of the English nation, made by sea or 
oucr Land, to the most remote and farthest distant quarters of the earth at any 
time within the compasse of these 1500 yeeres. Deuided into three Seuerall 
parts, according to the positions of the Regions whereunto they were directed. 
This work was further enlarged in 1599 ^^^ 1600. He was appointed preben- 
dary of Westminster in 1605. He died October 23, 1616, and was buried in 
Westminster Abbey. 



CHAPTER VII. 

1497-1521. 

While the vSpanish and the English expeditions had 
failed to find the attractive shores of Cathay by sailing 
westwardly across the Atlantic, the Portuguese were 
more fortunate in their long-continued attempts to 
reach the dominions of the Grand Khan by sailing 
eastwardly. Restricted by the papal decree to the pros- 
ecution of her voyages of discovery on the east side 
of the line of demarkation, Portugal zealously persisted 
in seeking along the coast of Africa a way to the 
Orient. Vasco da Gama, an intrepid navigator, was 
placed in command of an expedition, and sailed from 
Lisbon, in March, 1497, in the path marked out by 
Bartolomeu Dias, in 1487. When Da Gama came to 
the Cape of Good Hope, or the Stormy Cape (Cabo 
Tormentoso), he realized that the windy headland was 
rightly named. The hazardous attempts which he re- 
peatedly made to pass the stormy promontory so im- 
pressed his sailors with his extreme venturesomeness 
that they endeavored to persuade him to turn back. 
It is said that this made Da Gama comport " himself 
very angrily, swearing that if they did not double the 
cape, he would stand out to sea again as many times 
until the cape was doubled, or there should happen 
whatever should please God." Having achieved his 
bold purpose, on the twenty-second of November, 
1497, Da Gama made himself famous in reaching the 

205 



2o6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

remote coast of India, on the seventeenth of May, 
1498, and entered the harbor of Calicut,' three days 
afterward. Returning on the homeward voyage, he 
arrived at Lisbon, about the beginning of September, 

1499. 

To perfect and enjoy the privileges of her inaugu- 
rated commerce with India, Portugal immediately 
fitted out a fleet of merchantmen to carry her commod- 
ities to the distant country over the sea-path explored 
by her daring navigators. Pedro Alvarez Cabral was 
given command of thirteen ships, with which he sailed on 
the ninth of March, i5oo, with instructions to hold his 
course out at sea at some distance from the coast of 
Africa, in order to avoid the troublesome currents and 
delaying winds which had previously deterred mariners 
from encountering the perils of the unexplored route 
near the main-land. Cabral proceeded southward, but 
near the Cape Verd Islands lost sight of one of his 
ships, and while seeking her he lost his course. For- 
tunately, on Wednesday afternoon, on the twenty- 
second of April, he descried the summit of a round and 
hieh mountain on the eastern coast of Brazil, which he 
called Monte Pascoal.^ Perceiving the next morning 
that he had anchored opposite the mouth of a river, 
he sent Nicolao Coelho to examine it. From this an- 
chorage he sailed in search of a safe harbor, and on 
Saturday, the twenty-fifth of April, found the roadstead 
which he called Porto Seguro, which was in seventeen 

'Calicut is on the west coast of India, in 11° 15' north latitude, and 75° 50' 
east longitude. 

Paesi nouamente retrouati. Et Nouo Mondo da Alberico Vesputio Flor- 
entine intilulato. Stampato in Vicentia cu la impressa de MgrO Henrico 
Vicentino: & diligente cura & industriade Zamaria suo fiol nel mcccccvii. a di 
iii de Nouember. lib. ii. cap. li-lx. The three voyages of Vasco da Gama. 
From the Lendas da India of Caspar Corvea. Translated from the Portuguese 
by Henry E. J. Stanley. London, 1S79. Hakluyt. Soc. pub. 

" Fide Ruysch's map of 1508. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 207 

decrees of south latitude, accordinor to the observation 
made there. On the first of May a large wooden cross 
was erected to which was affixed the declaration of 
Cabral's discovery of the country for the king of Portu- 
gal. Cabral, having dispatched Caspar de Lemos with 
a small vessel to Lisbon with the report of his dis- 
covery, set sail, on the third of May, for India. Cabral 
called the discovered country Terra de Vera Cruz 
(Land of the True Cross), which name was shortly 
afterward changed to Terra de Santa Cruz (Land 
of the Holy Cross), and subsequently Brazil was 
substituted for it.^ 

In the year i5oo the Portuguese sailed in a differ- 
ent direction to seek a short route to Cathay. The 
Portuguese historian, Galvano refers to the expedition, 
saying : " In this same year i5oo it is said that Caspar 
Cortereal^ begged permission of King Emmanuel to 
discover the New Land (Terra Nova). He departed 
from the island Terceira with two ships equipped 
at his own expense, and he sailed to that region which 
is in the north in fifty degrees of latitude, which is a 
land now called after his name. He returned home 
in safety to the city of Lisbon. Sailing a second 
time on this voyage the ship was lost in which he 
went, and the other vessel came back to Portugal. 
His brother Miguel went to seek him with three 
ships at his own cost, and when they came to that 
coast, and found so many entrances of rivers and 
havens, each ship entered a different river, with this 
regulation and command, that they all three should 
meet ao;-ain on the twentieth of August. The other 

^ Paesi Nouamente retrouati. lib. iii. cap. Ixi-lxxxiiii. Raccolta di navi- 
gation! e viaggi. Ramusio. vol. i. fol. 132-139. Coleccion de los viages y 
descubiimientos. Navarrete. torn. iii. pp. 94, loi. 

' Caspar Cortereal was the son of Joao Vaz Cortereal, who, it is said, had 
previously made a voyage to the Land of Bacalhao (Terra de Bacalhao). 



208 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

two ships did as commanded, and they, seeing that 
Miguel Cortereal came not on the appointed day nor 
afterward in a certain time, returned to this reahn and 
never heard any thing more concerning him. * =^ * 
But that country is called Terra dos Cortereals unto 
this day." ' 

Damiao de Goes, the Portuguese historian, says 
Cortereal, called this region Terra Verde (Greenland), 
on account of its remarkable verdure, and the vast 
forests stretching all along the coast. "^ 

Ramusio, speaking of the exploration of the coast 
of North America says : " In the part of the New 
World, which runs toward the north and northwest, 
opposite our habitable part of Europe, many captains 
have navigated, and the first (by that which one 
knows), was Gaspar Cortereale, a Portuguese, who, in 
i5oo, went with two caravels intending to find some 
strait of the sea whence by a shorter voyage than that 
taken around Africa he would be able to go to the 
Spice Islands. He sailed so far forward that he came 
to a place where it was extremely cold, and he found, 
in the latitude of sixty degrees, a river closed with 
snow, to which he gave the name, calling it Rio 
Nevado. But he had not sufficient courage to pass 
much beyond it. The whole of this coast, which runs 
two hundred leaijues from Rio Nevado as far as to the 
port of Malvas, in fifty-six degrees, he saw full of 
people and along it many dwellings." ^ 

The earliest account of Gaspar Cortereals voyage 
of i5oi, from which he never returned, is contained in 

' Tratado, que compos o-nobre & notauel capitao Antonio Galuao. 

'"//«;«« ten-a que por senmtilo frcsca e de graiidcs aruoredos como o sao 
todas as que jazcm pera aqtiella baiida llie pos name terra verde." — Chronica do 
felicissitno rei Dom Emanuel. Lisboa, 1566. tomo i. fol. 65. 

* Raccolta di navigationi e viaggi. Ramusio. vol. iii. fol. 346. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 209 

a letter written by Pietro Pasqualigo, the Venetian 
ambassador at the court of Portugal, to his brothers 
in Italy, dated October 19, i5oi. The writer says : 
" On the eighth of the present month, one of the two 
caravels which his most serene majesty sent the past 
year under the command of Caspar Corterat, arrived 
here, and reports the finding of a country distant west 
and northwest, two thousand miles, heretofore quite 
unknown. 

" They ran along the coast between six hundred 
and seven hundred miles without arriving at its termi- 
nation, on which account they concluded it to be the 
same continent that is connected with another land 
which was discovered last year in the north, but which 
the caravel could not reach on account of the ice and 
the vast quantity of snow, and they are confirmed in 
this belief by the multitude of great rivers they found, 
which certainly could not proceed from an island. They 
report that this land is thickly peopled, and that the 
houses are built of very long beams of timber, and cov- 
ered with the skins of fishes. They have brought 
hither along with them seven of the inhabitants, includ- 
ing men, women, and children ; and in the other 
caravel, which is looked for every honr, they are bring- 
ing fifty more. These people, in color, figure, stature, 
and expression, greatly resemble gypsies. They are 
clothed with the skins of different beasts, but chiefly of 
the otter, wearing the hair outside in summer, and next 
to the skin in winter. These skins, too, are not sewed 
together, nor shaped to the body in any fashion, but 
wrapped around the arms and shoulders as they were 
taken from the animals. * * * On this account 
their appearance is wholly barbarous ; yet they are 
very sensible to shame, gentle in their manners, and 



2IO DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

better made in their arms, legs, and shoulders than can 
be expressed. Their faces are punctured in the same 
manner as the Indians ; some have six marks, some 
eight, some fewer. They use a language of their own, 
but it is understood by no one. Moreover, I believe 
that every possible language has been addressed to 
them. They have no iron in their country, but manu- 
facture knives out of certain kinds of stones, with which 
they point their arrows. 

" They have also brought from this island a piece 
of a broken sword inlaid with gold, which we can pro- 
nounce undoubtedly to have been made in Italy; and 
one of the children had in his ears two pieces {todini) 
of silver, which likewise appear to have been made in 
Venice, a circumstance inducing me to believe that 
their country belongs to the continent, since it is 
evident that if it were an island where any vessel 
had touched before this time we should have heard 
of it.' 

" They have plenty of salmon, herring, cod, and 
other fish of the same kind. They have an abun- 
dance of timber, principally pine, fitted for masts and 
yards of ships, on which account his serene majesty 
anticipates the greatest profit from this country, both 
in providing timber for ships, of which he, at present, 
stands in great need, and from the men that inhabit it, 
who appear admirably fitted to endure labor, and will 
probably be the best slaves which have been found up 
to this time. 

** This arrival appeared to me to be an event 
of which it was right to inform you ; and if on 
the arrival of the other caravel I receive any ad- 

"• It seems that the writer was ignorant of the fields of the discoveries of the 
English in 1497 and 1498. Giovanni Caboto, the Venetian navigator, no doubt 
had made the presents found in the possession of the inhabitants. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 211 

ditional information, it shall be transmitted to you in 
like manner." ' 

Caspar Cortereal, who was expected to return to 
Lisbon in the second caravel, never reached Portugal. 
Miguel, his brother, sailed from Lisbon in May i5o2, 
with three ships, to search for Caspar and the missing 
vessel, but he was never heard of again, and it was 
conjectured that both of the brothers had been slain 
by the savages from whom they had taken so many 
of their relatives to serve as slaves in Portugal. 

No little enthusiasm was created at the court of 
Portugal by Cabral's report of the discovery of the 
Land of the True Cross. King Emmanuel at once 
ordered three vessels to be equipped to sail to the 
new country. Having heard of the voyages made 
by Amerigo Vespucci to the Land of Pearls (Terra 
delle Perle), he wrote to Vespucci in Seville, and solic- 
ited him to enter his service. The illness of the ex- 
plorer did not then permit him to accept the tempting 
offer of the king of Portugal. However, when he 
was afterward visited by the king's ambassador, Ciuli- 
ano di Bartolomeo del Ciocondo, Vespucci consented 
to go to Lisbon and to be commissioned by King 
Emmanuel to accompany the fleet that was prepared 
to sail to Terra de Vera Cruz. His departure from 
Spain, he says, was a matter of regret to all who knew 
him, because there he was honored, and there the king 
had a right to claim his services.^ Narrating the inci- 
dents of his third voyage to the New World, Vespucci 
writes : 

^ Paesi nouamente retrouati. lib. vi. cap. cxxvi. — Vide Letter of Alberto 
Cantino. Archives of Modena. Cancelleria ducale. Dispacci dalla Spagna. 
Jean et Sebastien Cabot. Harrisse. pp. 262-264. 

* " Che fu tenuia a titale la mia uenuia da qttanti miconosceuano : perche 
miparii di Casiiglia, doue mi era facto ho7iore, 6^ il re miteneua i' buona pos^ 
sessione." 



212 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

** We departed from the port of Lisbon, three ships 
in company, on the tenth of May, i5oi, and took our 
course directly for the Grand Canary Islands. * * * 
From there we sailed to the coast of Ethiopia, and ar- 
rived at the port called Beseneghe, in the torrid zone. 

* * * We left this port of Ethiopia and steered to 
the southwest. * * * In sixty-seven days we 
reached land lying seven hundred leagues southwest 
of that port. * ^- * 'pj-j^ season was very unfavor- 
able for the voyage, particularly when we approached 
the equator, where, in the month of June, it is winter. 

* ''• '^'' It pleased God, however, to show us a new 
country on the seventeenth of August. Then we 
anchored at the distance of a half league from the 
coast. We got out our boats and went on land to see 
if the country were inhabited, and if it were, by what 
class of people. We found that it was inhabited by a 
people of a lower condition than that of beasts. 
:;: :i: =!: ^y^ ^ook posscsslou of it in the name of his 
majesty. It lies five degrees south of the equator. 

* * * We sailed in a southeasterly direction, on a 
line parallel with the coast, making many landings, but 
never discovering any natives who could converse 
with us. Runninof on this course, we found the land 
made a turn to the southwest. As soon as we doubled 
the cape, which we named the Cape of St. Augustine, 
we began to sail to the southwest. * '^' '^' This 
cape is eight degrees south of the equator." ' 

While the explorers were sailing along the east 
coast of Brazil, they arrived at a place where they 
anchored five days. " Here " says Vespucci, " we 
found carmine stems very large and green, and some 
already dry on the tops of the trees. We left 

' S/a q'sto catio 8. f^radi fuori della liiiea equinoctiale tierso lausiro." 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 213 

this port, always sailing to the southwest in sight 
of the land, making many anchorages and treating 
with innumerable people. We went so far toward the 
south that we were beyond the tropic of Capricorn 
where the south pole is elevated thirty-two degrees 
above the horizon. We had entirely lost sight of the 
Little Bear, and the Great Bear was very low, almost on 
the verge of the horizon.' We steered by the stars of 
the south pole, which are many, and much larger and 
brighter than those of our pole. I traced the figures 
of the greater part of them, particularly those of the 
first and greater magnitude, giving an explanation 
of the circuits which they made around the pole, 
together with a description of their diameters and 
semi-diameters, as may be seen in my four journeys. 
We ran about seven hundred and fifty leagues along 
this coast. * * * We saw a great number of red- 
wood (verzino) and cassia trees, and of those which 
produce myrrh. * * * We found ourselves in 
such a high southern latitude, that the south pole 
was elevated above the horizon fifty-two degrees. 
* * * -£i^Q ^qI^ |-qj^ ^]^g seventh of April, i5o2] 

was so severe that no one in the fleet could endure 
it. * * * We agreed that the superior captain "" 
should make signals for the fleet to turn about, 
and that we should depart from this land and steer 
'our course in the direction of Portuo^al." 

After touching at the port of Sierra Leone, 
and at the Azores, the explorers reached the 

' " Tanto fumo uerso laustro, chegia stauamo fuora dd tropica di capricorno : 
a donde el polo del Meridione salzaua sopra lo Orizonie 32. gradi : et di gia 
kauamo perduio del tucto loTsa viinore, 6^ la maggiore chi staua molto bassa, 
&" quasi cisimonstrazia aljiiie delle orizonte." 

* Andre Gongalves, it is said, had command of the fleet. — Vide O Brazil 
no seculo xvi. Estudos de Capistrano de Abreu. Rio de Janeiro, i88o. pp. 
9-23- 



214 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

port of Lisbon on the seventh day of September, 
i5o2/ 

Vespucci was again sent by the king of Portugal, 
in i5o3, with a fleet of six ships commanded by Gon- 
9alo Coelho, to discover an island " toward the east 
called Melaccha, which we know lies in the sea," says 
Vespucci, " thirty-three degrees from the south pole." 
Departing from the port of Lisbon on the tenth of 
May, the vessels stood for the Cape Verd Islands. 
After going to Sierra Leone on the coast of Africa, 
the fleet sailed toward the southwest. On this course 
one of the vessels struck on a rock, and was aban- 
doned by the crew. On the east coast of Brazil, the 
fleet entered the harbor which the Portuguese called 
the Bay of All Saints (Bahia de todos os Santos). At 
a harbor two hundred and sixty leagues farther south, 
or in eiMiteen des:rees south latitude, a fortress was 
erected, and garrisoned with twenty-four men. The 
fleet then sailed for Portugal, and entered the port of 
Lisbon on the eighteenth of June, i5o4.^ 

The opinion of Columbus that a strait could be 
found to the south or southwest of Cuba through which 
ships might sail to Cathay, induced Vicente Yanez Pin- 
zon and Juan Diaz de Soils in i5o6 to search along the 
coast bordering the Bay of Honduras for a navigable 
passage to the Indian Ocean. ^ They held the same 
course as the admiral, says Herrera, " and sailing as far 
as the islands Giianajos steered westward as far as 
Golfo Dulce, but did not see it, for it lies hid. However, 
they observed the inlet the sea makes between the 
land that forms the bay and the coast of lucatan. 

• Lettera di Amerigo Vespucci. Terzo viaggio. — Vide Tratado, que com- 
pQs o nobre & notauel Capitao Antonio Galuao. 

' Lettera di Amerigo Vespucci. Quarto viaggio. — Fii/c Chronica do felicis- 
simo rei Dom Emanuel. Damiao de Goes, tomo i. fol. 65. 

* Ferdinand Columbus gives 1508 as the date of the voyage. 



• DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 215 

♦ * * From where they descried the Sierras of 
Caria, they steered northward and discovered a great 
part of the main-land of lucatan." ' 

The unique and pecuharly shaped map made by the 
German cartographer, Johann Ruysch, contained in the 
edition of Claudius Ptolemy's geography, printed at 
Rome, in i5o8,^ is the earliest engraved chart on which 
appear the fields of discovery, in the western hemi- 
sphere, entered by Columbus, Cabot, Cortereal, Cabral, 
Vespucci, and other early explorers of the coast of the 
new continent. 

Geographically ignorant of the longitude of the dis- 
covered part of North America, then called the New 
Land (Terra Nova), Ruysch represents it as if it were 
a part of the eastern coast of Asia, between the two 
hundred and eio;htieth and the three hundredth meridi- 
ans. Better informed respecting its latitude, he de- 
lineates it as extending from the forty-fifth to the fifty- 
fifth parallel of north latitude.^ Immediately north of 

' Historia general de los hechos de los Castellanos en las islas tierra firme 
del mar oceano escrita por Antonio de Herrera. Madrid, 1601-1615. dec. i. 
lib. vi. cap. xvii. Historia del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. Ixxxix. Colec- 
cion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. torn. iii. p. 46. 

Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas was born in Cuellar, in Spain, in 1549, 
and died in 1625. His General history of the acts of the Spaniards on the 
islands and continent of the ocean-sea, is divided into eight decades, from 
1492 to 1554, contained in four volumes, the first one of which was published 
in Madrid, in 1601. 

^ Claudius Ptolemy. In hoc opere haec continentvr geographiae CI. 
Ptolemiasi a plurima uiris utriusque linguae doctiss. emedata : & cu archetypo 
graeco ab ipsis collata. Schemata cu demostrationibus suis correcta a Marco 
Beneuentauo monacho coelestino, & loanne Cotta Veronensis iuris mathematicis 
consultissimis * * * Nona & universalior orbis cogniti tabula loa 
Ruysch Germano elaborata. * * * Anno Virginei Partvs mdviii. Rome. 

The map is twenty-two by sixteen inches. The copy of one half of the fan- 
shaped map ill the cover-pocket is a reduced fac-simile of the original section. 

'The names inscribed along the coast of Terra Nova are: C. Glaciato 
(Ice cape), Baia de Rockas (Bay of Rocks), R. Grado, In. Biccalavras (Cod- 
fish island), C. de Portogesi (Cape of the Portuguese), Barbatos In., and 
Bicrgetv In. 



2i6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the New Land is the Greenland Sea (Sinus Grvenlan- 
tevs), and beyond it, Greenland (Grvenlant), discovered 
by the Northmen. South of the New Land, between 
the fortieth and twenty-fifth parallels is the unnamed 
and falsely represented island of Cuba, on the west side 
of which is a scroll bearing the information : "As far 
as this the ships of Ferdinand, king of Spain, have 
come." South of this island and that of Espaiiola 
(Spagnola) is the discovered part of South America, 
then denominated the Land of the Holy Cross or the 
New World (Terra Sancti Crucis sive Mundus Novus). 
The inscription on the represented territory embraces 
the following information : " At different places this 
region is inhabited, and it is supposed by many to be 
another world. Women and men appear either entirely 
naked or clad with interwoven leaves and the feathers 
of birds of various colors. They live together in com- 
mon without any religion or king. They are continu- 
ally at war among themselves. They eat the human 
flesh of captives. They exercise so much in the salu- 
brious air that they live more than one hundred and 
fifty years. They are rarely sick, and then they cure 
themselves solely with the roots of plants. Here lions 
are born, and serpents and other terrible monsters 
found in the forests. Very large quantities of pearls and 
gold are in the mountains and rivers. From here 
Brasil-wood, or verzini, and cassia are carried away by 
the Portuguese." Below this inscription is another 
which contains the following statement : " Portuguese 
navigators have inspected this part of this land, and 
have sailed as far as the fiftieth degree of south latitude 
without seeing the southern limit of it." 

On the scroll on the western part of the delineated 
territory of South America this information is in- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 217 

scribed : " As far as this Spanish navigators have 
come, and they have called this land, on account 
of its greatness, the New World. Inasmuch as they 
have not wholly explored it nor surveyed it farther 
than the present termination, it must remain thus im- 
perfectly delineated until it is known in what direction 
it extends." 

On the upper part of the right margin of the map 
the following fiction respecting the configuration of the 
earth at the north pole is inscribed, " It is said in 
the book concerning the fortunate discovery^ that at 
the arctic pole there is a high magnetic rock, thirty- 
three German miles in circumference. A suroinof sea 
surrounds this rock, as if the water were discharged 
downward from a vase through an opening. Around 
it are islands, two of which are inhabited." 

North of Greenland is another inscription contain- 
ing a popular fiction of the dangers besetting ships in 
the Arctic Ocean : " Here a suro-insf sea begins ; here 
the compasses of a ship do not hold, nor are ships 
which have iron about them able to turn about." 
Among the perils of the Greenland Sea were the de- 
ceptions practised by the savages inhabiting the islands 
in it : " It is said that those who came formerly in 
ships among these islands for fish and other food were 
so deceived by the demons that they could not go on 
land without danger." 

The four voyages of Amerigo Vespucci had ac- 
quainted him with so many unknown peoples and 
places in the New World that he was induced by his 
own inclinations and the suggestions of his friends to 
write an account of the explorations of the different 

* The voyage of Nicholas de Lynna, a Franciscan monk, to the regions 
near the north pole. — Vide Hakluyt. vol. i. pp. 121, 122. Inscription on 
Mercator's map of the world of 1569. 



2i8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

expeditions with which he had been sent by the 
sovereigns of Spain and Portugal. In his letter, dated 
in Lisbon, the fourth of September, i5o4,' he speaks 
of the intended publication of his voyages in a volume 
in the style of a geography {up. ttolume in stilo geo- 
gra/ia), and calls the composition {zibaldone), " Le 
Quattro Giornate " (The Four Journeys). 

The earliest known work containing an account of 
Vespucci's four voyages is entitled " Cosmographiae 
introductio" (Introduction to geography), printed in 
St. Die, in Lorraine, on the twenty-sixth of April, 
1 507.^ This rare Latin book was the work of a 
German scholar named Martin Waldsee-miiller, a pro- 
fessor of geography in the gymnasium in St. Die,^ 
who having translated his surname into Hylacomylus ^ 
affixed this Greek pseudonym to his writings. On 
the reverse page of the fifteenth leaf of Hylacomy- 
lus's Introduction to geography is the notable sugges- 
tion that the land in the western hemisphere visited 
by Amerigo Vespucci should be called Amerige 
or America. The enthusiastic geographer, having 
described Europe, Asia, and Africa, remarks : 

"And as now these parts have been more widely 
surveyed, and another fourth part has been found by 

' Lettera di Amerigo Vespucci delle isole nuoumente trouate in quattro 
suoi viaggi. — Vide Amerigo Vespucci. Varnhagen. pp. 33-64. Bibliotheca 
Americana vetustissima. [Harrisse.] pp. 149, 150. 

'Cosmographiae introdvctio cvm qvibvsdam geometriae ac astronomiae 
prinoipiis ad eam rem necessariis. Insuper quatuor Americi Vespuccij naui- 
gationes Vniversalis cbosmographiae descriplio tam in solido qzplano eis etiam 
insertis quae Ptholomeo ignota a nuperis reperta sunt. * * * Finitu. vij. 
kl' Maij. Anno supra sesqui Millesium. vij. 

^ Baron von Humboldt furnishes the information that Martin Waldsee- 
miiller of Freiburg, diocese of Constantius, was a student under the rectorship 
of Conrad Knoll of Griiningen, the seventh of December, 1490, and had estab- 
lished a bookstore at St. Die, shortly before 1507. — Examen critique de 1' his- 
toire de la geographie du nouveau continent. Humboldt, vol. iv. pp. 104-106. 

* Hylacomylus, the forest-lake miller. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 219 

Americus Vesputius (as will be perceived by what fol- 
lows), I can not see why any one can justly forbid 
the calling of this part Amerige or America, that is, 
the land of Americus, from Americus, the discoverer, 
an intelligent man, as Europe and Asia have taken 
their names from women."' 

The name America in a short time became a 
popular designation for the continent in the western 
hemisphere.^ 

^ " Nuc vo <Sr' he partes sunt latius lustratae &= alia quarta pars per Afner- 
ieu Vesputiu (vt in sequentibus audieticr) inuenta est qua non video cur quis 
iure vetet ab America inuentore sagacis ingenij viro Amerigen quasi Americi 
terra siue Americain dicendd : czl ^ Europa (5r= Asia a mulieribus sua sortita 
sini nomina." 

Herodotus, speaking of the designations of the other divisions of the earth, 
says : " Nor can I conjecture for what reason these different names have been 
given to the earth, which is one, and those derived from tlie names of women. 
* * * Nor can I learn the names of those wlio made this division, nor 
whence they derived the appellations. Libya [Africa] is said by most of the 
Greeks to take its name from a native woman of the name of Libya ; and Asia, 
from the wife of Prometheus. But the Lydians claim this name, saying that 
Asia was called after Asius, son of Cotys, son of Manes, and not after Asia, 
the wife of Prometheus ; from whom also a tribe of Sardis is called the 
Asian tribe. Whether Europe, then, is surrounded by water is known by no 
man, nor is it clear whence it received this name, nor who gave it, unless we 
will say that the region received the name from the Tyrian Europa, and that it 
was previously without a name like other regions, for she evidently belonged to 
Asia, and never came into the country which is now called Europe by the 
Grecians, and only passed from Phoenicia to Crete, and from Crete to Lycia." 
— Herodotus : Melpomene xlv. 

^ Until recently the map made by Petrus Apianus (Peter Benewitz), in the 
Polyhistor of C. Julius Solinus, printed in Vienna, in 1520, was supposed to be 
the earliest on which the name of America was engraved. However, the dis- 
covery, in France, in iSSo, of a copy of the " Cosmographiae introductio," 
printed by Jean de la Place, without a title or coloplion-date, containing a map 
of the world, supposed to have been made by Ludovicus Boulenger, between the 
years I5i4and 1520, disentitled the former to its celebrity. The map is divided 
into twelve sections or gores which can be cut and pasted on a globe. The 
represented territory of North and South America is shown in two divisions, 
separated by a large body of water, between the tenth and twentieth parallels 
of north latitude. The word " Nova" appears on the northern division ; and 
on the southern, " America noviter reperta." A similar inscription it is said is 
on a cartographic representation. of the world, in Vienna, made in 1509: " Une 
semblable appellation se lit sur la projection, ^galetneni iniprimde en fuseaux, d' 



220 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Although Vespucci repeatedly mentions in his 
letter that he held subordinate positions under the 
superior captains commanding the different fleets with 
which he had sailed to the New World, twenty-one 
years after his death he was unjustly accused by 
Johannes Schoner, in a little geographical work, as 
having contrived to have the continent called by his 
name/ Schoner's imputation was evidently caused 
by a spirit of ill-will, for he attempted, it would seem, 
to lessen the importance of the discoveries made by 
Spain and Portugal, by placing on a globe, made 
by him in i520, this inscription designating South 
America : " America vel Brasilia sive papagalli terra " 
(America or Brasil or the land of parrots)/ Later still 
a number of writers in turn undertook to defame Ves- 
pucci by asserting that he did not make the voyage of 
1497, and to support their arguments quoted the 
erroneous statements of the different versions of his 
letter. The assumptions of these writers, however, 
are not corroborated by the Italian text of Vespucci's 
letter, in part presented on the preceding pages, nor 
are they verified by later researches in the archives of 
Spain and Portugal.^ 

When the Spaniards were exploring the West India 

un globe ierrestre a la date de 1 509 qui fait partie dc la collectione de M. le 
gindral de Haiislab a Vienne." — Jean et Sebastien Cabot. liaiiisse. p. 182. 
Note, 

' '^ Americus Vesputius maritima loca Indies superiotis ex Hispaniis navigio 
ad ocridejttcvi perlustrans, earn parterii qua; stiperioris Indiw est credidit esse 
Insttlam quam a suo 7tomine vocari instituit." — loannis Schoneri Carolostadii 
opvscvlvm geographicvm ex diversorum libris ac cartis. [Nuremberg, 1533.] 

" Schoner's globe is still preserved in the library of Nuremberg. 

' Historia general de los hechos de los Castellanos en las islas tierra firme 
del mar oceano. Herrera. dec. i. lib. iv. cap. i, ii. Amerigo Vespucci. 
Varnhagen. pp. 33-64. Bibliotheca Americana. [Harrisse.] pp. 62-68, 
149,150,304,305. O Brazil no seculo xvi. Capistrano de Abreu. pp. 1-39. 
Descobrimento do Brasil e sea deseuvolvimento no seculo xvi. Capistrano de 
Abreu. Rio dc Janeiro, 1883. pp. 17-66. 



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P 



9- 



4 

5 




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Q ^ 










Q X 



2 c 

Xi o 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 221 

archipelago a report became current that on one of 
the more northward islands there was a fountain, the 
water of which possessed extraordinary virtues. Peter 
Martyr heard the rumor, and wrote, in i5ii, to the 
bishop of Rome, saying : " There is an island about 
three hundred and twenty-five leagues from Espan- 
ola, as they say who have searched for it, named 
Boiuca or Agnaneo, on which is a never-failing 
spring of running water of such marvelous efficacy 
that when the water is drunk, perhaps, with some 
attention to diet, it makes old people young again. 
And here I must beg your holiness not to think that 
this is said jestingly or thoughdessly, for they have 
reported it everywhere as a fact, so that not only all 
the common people but also the educated and the 
wealthy believe it to be true." ^ 

The island of Boiuca appears to be partly outlined 
on the small map in Peter Martyr's " Legatio Baby- 
lonica," printed at Seville in i5ii. It is designated 
on the latter as a part of the island of Beimeni, — 
" Isla de beimeni parte." ^ 

Among those who gave credence to the fiction of 
the marvellous virtues of the spring of Boiuca was Juan 
Ponce de Leon, a Spanish cavalier, who had attained 
considerable military fame in the West Indies.^ He 
had sailed from Spain In 1493 to Espanola in one of 
the ships of Columbus's second expedition. In i5o9 he 
took part in the subjugation of the Island of Borrlquen, 
afterward called Porto Rico, of which he was made 

* De Orbo Novo decades, dec. ii. cap. x. 

" The map is found on the reverse page of the forty-fifth leaf of Peter 
Martyr's rare book, entitled : P. Martyris Angli Mediolanensis opera Legatio 
Babylonica, Oceani decas, poemata, epigrammata. Impressum Hispali cu summa 
diligencia Jacobu Corumberger, Alemanu. Anno Millesimo quingentissimo. 
xi. meso vero Aprili. The chart measures seven and a half by eleven inches. 

^ Juan Ponce was born at Leon, Spain, about 1460. 



222 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

governor. Beguiling himself with the hope that he 
could renew the vigor of his youth by bathing in the 
stream of life-giving water, and at the same time add 
honor to his name by becoming the discoverer of the 
island on which the fountain was said to be, Juan Ponce 
fitted out three vessels and sailed from the port of St. 
German, Porto Rico, on Thursday, the third of March, 
i5i2, to search for the island Boiuca, which some called 
Bimini. "It is certain," says Herrera, the Spanish his- 
torian, " that Juan Ponce de Leon besides intending to 
make new discoveries, as all the Spaniards at that time 
aspired to do, was also intent on finding the fountain 
of Bimini and a river in Florida; the Indians of Cuba 
and Espanola affirming that old people bathing them- 
selves in them became young again, and it was a fact 
that many Indians of Cuba, firmly believing that there 
was such a stream, had found that island not long 
before the Spaniards, and had passed over to Florida 
in search of the river, and there built a town, where 
their descendants reside to this day. This report so 
affected all the princes and caciques in those parts that 
it was a hobby to find a river which wrought such a 
wonderful change as made old people young, so that 
there was not a river or a brook, scarcely a lake or a 
puddle, in all Florida, in which they did not ^athe 
themselves." ' 

The explorations and discoveries of Juan Ponce are 
thus described by Herrera : " On Sunday, the 
twenty-seventh of March, the day of the Feast of the 
Resurrection, commonly called the Feast of Flowers, 
{(jue era Dia de Pascuade Resitrrcccion, que comunmente 
diceit de Floi^es^ they saw an island and passed by it. 
On Monday, the twenty-eighth, they steered in the 

' Historia general. Herrera. dec. i. lib. ix. cap. x. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 223 

same direction, fifteen leagues, until Wednesday, when 
the weather became foul. They then stood west-north- 
west until the second of April. The water grew 
shallower until they came into nine fathoms, a league 
from the land, which was in thirty degrees and eight 
minutes. Thinking this land was an island they called 
it La Florida, because it had a very pretty landscape 
of many green groves, and it was level and regular, and 
because they discovered it at the time of the Floral 
Feast {Pascua Florida)."- Juan Ponce wished the 
name to conform to these two facts. He went on land 
to learn the language and to take possession. 

" On Friday, the eighth, they sailed again the same 
way, and on Saturday, south by east, until the twen- 
tieth, when they saw some Indian huts from the place 
where they had cast anchor. The next day the three 
ships sailed along the coast and entered a current 
which was so swift that it drove them back, althousfh 
they had the Wind strong." The two ships, near the 
land, dropped their anchors, but the force of the stream 
was so great that it strained the cables. The third 
vessel, a brigantine, being farther out, either found no 
bottom or was not sensible of the current, which carried 
her so far from the shore that they lost sight of her, 
although the day was bright and the weather fine. 

"Juan Ponce being called by the Indians went 
ashore and the latter at once undertook to possess 
themselves of the boat, the oars, and the arms. This 
was tolerated till one of the Indians stunning a sailor 
with a stroke of a cudgel on the head, when the Span- 
iards were compelled to fight. They had two of their 

' The Indians called this region Cautio. Historia general. Herrera. 
dec. i. lib. ix. cap. x. 

^ The Gulf Stream, which at this point is quite deep and narrow, has a 
velocity varying from four to five miles an hour. 



224 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

men wounded with darts and arrows pointed with sharp 
bones, and the Indians received little injury. Night 
parting them, Juan Ponce, with considerable difficulty, 
got his men together and sailed thence to a river, 
where they wooded and watered, and waited for the 
brigantine. Sixty Indians came to attack them, one 
of whom was taken to give information and to learn 
the Spanish language. The river they called Rio de 
la Cruz, (River of the Cross), planting there a stone 
cross, bearing an inscription."' 

On the twenty-third of September, after having 
coasted in different directions along the Flowery Land, 
Juan Ponce determined to return to Porto Rico. Be- 
fore he set sail, he sent Juan Perez de Ortubia to make 
a further search for the rejuvenating fountains on the 
island of Bimini. Not long after Juan Ponce's return 
to Porto Rico, Ortubia arrived there and reported that 
he had found the island, but not the wonderful spring.'' 

' " On Sunday, the eighth of May, they doubled the Cape of Florida, giv- 
ing it the name of the Cape of the Currents (Cabo de Corrientes), because they 
are stronger there than the wind, and came to an anchorage near a town called 
Abaioa. All this coast, from the Point of Reefs (Punta de Arracifes) to the 
Cape of the Currents, trending north and south one point to the eastward, is 
clean, and has six fathoms water, the cape lying in twenty-eight degrees fifteen 
minutes. They sailed on till they met with two islands to the southward, in 
twenty-seven degrees, one of which, being a league in compass, they named 
Santa Marta, and took in water there. * 

" On Friday, the thirteenth of May, they sailed along a shoal and a row of 
islands as far as the island which they called Pola, lying in twenty-six degrees 
and a half. Between the shoal and the row of islands and the continent is a 
spacious sea, like a bay. 

" On Sunday, the day of the Feast of the Holy Spirit, the fifteenth of May, 
they coasted ten leagues along a row of small islands as far as two white ones, 
and they called them all the Martyrs, (las Martires), because the high rocks, at 
a distance, look like men suffering, and the name has suited them well on account 
of the large number of persons who have since been lost there. The rocks lie 
in twenty-six degrees fifteen minutes. The ships held on, sometimes north and 
sometimes northeast, until the twenty-third of May ; and on the twenty-fourth 
tney ran along the coast to the southward as far as some small islands which 
lay out at sea, and still they did not perceive that it was the main-land." 

' Ilistoria general. Ilerrera. dec. i. lib. ix. cap. x, xii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 225 

Juan Ponce de Leon went to Spain and obtained 
from the crown the appointment of adelantado of 
Bimini and Florida. When he heard, while living at 
Porto Rico, the reports of the success of Hernando 
Cortes in Mexico, he fitted out, in i52i, two ships, and 
sailed to Florida to take possession of it and to settle 
a colony on its attractive shores. But the natives val- 
iantly opposed the occupation of their country and 
drove the ambitious invader, with the loss of many 
men, to his ships. Juan Ponce was wounded in the 
thigh by an arrow. The vessels sailed to Cuba, where 
the impoverished and disabled Spaniard not long after 
died.^ 

The exploration of Central America was continued 
in i5ii by Vasco Nunez de Balboa, a native of Xeres 
de los Caballeros, Spain, who had accompanied Rod- 
rigo de Bastidas when he sailed on his voyage of dis- 
covery to the New World, in October, i5oo. In i5io 
the Indian village on the isthmus of Darien, west of 
the Gulf of Uraba, was made the seat of the ofovern- 
ment of this part of the continent by the Spaniards, 
and called Santa Maria de la Antisfua del Darien. 
Vasco Nunez de Balboa was appointed alcade of the 
new colony. This ambitious and avaricious adven- 
turer penetrated the dense forest belting the northern 
coast of the isthmus, and invaded the interior, where 
he found a wealthy cacique, named Comogre. The 
Indian chief entertained Vasco Nunez and his four- 
score followers with generous hospitality in his 
large and attractive palace, a wooden building one 
hundred and fifty paces long and eighty wide. He 
presented his indigent guest with four thousand 
ounces of golden ornaments and sixty slaves. " This 

* Primera y segunda parte de la historia general de las Indias. Gomara. 
cap. X. 



226 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

gold, with as much more obtained at another place," 
says Peter Martyr, " our men weighed on the porch of 
Comogre's palace, to separate the fifth part due to the 
king's exchequer, for it was a law that the fifth part of 
the gold, pearls, and precious stones should be given 
to the royal treasurer, and the remainder be divided 
among the discoverers. While our men were wran- 
gling and contending about the division of the gold, the 
eldest son of Comogre, the cacique, who was present 
and whom we commended for wisdom, approached 
with some appearance of anger him who was weighing 
the treasure, and struck the balances with his fist, scat- 
tering the gold all over the porch." Pointing south- 
ward toward the mountains, he told them that beyond 
those sierras was a great sea, on which people sailed 
with ships as large as theirs, and that the adjacent 
country contained great quantities of gold. 

Balboa heard this surprising announcement with 
delight, and, ambitious to be honored as the discoverer 
of the unnamed sea and the country abounding with 
rich mines, began to plan to go there and achieve the 
notoriety that would make his name forever famous. 
On the first of September, i5i3, Vasco Nunez, with 
one hundred and ninety men and a number of Indian 
guides, embarked at Santa Maria de la Antigua and 
set sail in a brigantine for the Indian village of Coyba. 
Here he began his toilsome and dangerous march 
across the isthmus. After enduring untold hardships 
the pertinacious Spaniard and his small body of way- 
worn followers arrived at the foot of the Sierra de 
Quarequa, intercepting the view of the unseen ocean.' 

* Ten years before this, says Humboldt, "Columbus distinctly learned, 
when he was coasting along the eastern shores of Veragua, that to the west of 
this land there was a sea ' which in less than nine days' sail would bear ships to 
the Che}-sonesus aurea of Ptolemy and to the mouth of the Ganges.' In the 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 227 

While climbing the rugged slope of the intervening 
mountain, on the twenty-fifth of September, Balboa 
commanded his men to halt and to remain where they 
were until he had reached the summit and surveyed 
the wide expanse of the great ocean billowing between 
the isthmus and the remote shores of India. When 
the enthusiastic Spaniard ascended to the top of the 
mountain and beheld the Mar del Sur (Sea of the 
South), he fell upon his knees and thanked God for 
honoring him as its discoverer, " as he was a man of 
moderate ability, little knowledge, and humble birth." 
Calling to his men to come to him, he ordered them, 
after surveying the discovered sea, to construct a 
wooden cross, and to plant it where he had kneeled 
and rendered thanks for the honor conferred on him. 
A mound of stones was built near the cross as a monu- 
ment to commemorate the discovery of the ocean and 
the adjacent country for his majesty, the king of Spain. 
Descending the southern slope of the mountain, Balboa 
and his followers made their way to the shore of the 
bay, which he called San Miguel, where the proud 
discoverer, with a banner embellished with the picture 
of the Holy Virgin and Child and the insignia of Spain, 
marched into the sea, and took possession of it in the 
name of his sovereign, King Ferdinand. Having ex- 
plored a part of the southern coast of the isthmus, 
Vasco Nunez and his men reentered the wilderness 
and arrived at Santa Maria de la Antigua on the nine- 
teenth of January, i5i4. 

same Carta rarissima, which contains the beautiful and poetic narration of a 
dream, the admiral says that ' the opposite coasts of Veragua, near the Rio de 
Belen, are situated relatively to another, as Tortosa on the Mediterranean and 
Fuenterabia in Biscay, or as Venice and Pisa.' The great ocean, the South 
Pacific, was even at that time regarded as merely a continuation of the Sinus 
magmis{jueycx? KoXno?) of Ptolemy, situated before the golden Chersonesus, 
whilst Cattigara and the land of the Sines (Thinae) were supposed to constitute 
its eastern boundary." — Humboldt : Cosmos. Otte's trans, vol. ii. pp. 642, 643. 



228 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

In the following year Caspar Morales and Francisco 
Pizarro crossed the isthmus with sixty men, and visited 
the island which Balboa had called Isla Rica. In i5i6, 
Vasco Nunez de Balboa, ambitious of obtaining greater 
fame, and having two hundred men and considerable 
money at his command, transported the timber, rig- 
ging, and other appendages of two brigantines across 
the isthmus, and after putting the vessels in sailing 
condition, launched them upon the recently discovered 
ocean. After a short cruise among the islands near 
Isla Rica, Balboa returned to the Spanish settlement at 
Ada, on the north coast, where he was arrested on 
some false charges and -put in irons by Pedrarias Davila, 
"as a traitor and an usurper of the territories of the 
crown of Spain." The enmity of Pedrarias was so bit- 
ter toward the innocent officer that the Spanish gover- 
nor of Darien ordered Balboa to be executed. In r 5 1 7, 
at the age of forty-one years, in the plaza of Ada, the 
discoverer of the South Sea was publicly beheaded.' 

To further explore the coast of Brazil, it is said that 
Juan Diaz de Solis sailed from Lepe, Spain, on the 
eighth of October, i5i5. Descrying the continent at 
Cape San Roque, in five degrees south latitude, he 
steered southward along the coast to Rio de Janeiro, 
(River of January,) in twenty- three degrees soutli lati- 
tude. Thence he coasted farther southward and en- 
tered a large bay of fresh water, which he called Mar 
Dulce, that was afterward called Rio de la Plata. While 
exploring this stream, De Solis, with some of his crew, 
went on land, and while ashore was attacked by the 
natives, and falling into their hands he and his men 
were roasted and devoured. The vessel returned to 

' Historia general. Herrera. dec. i. lib. x. cap. i, ii, iv. dec. ii. lib. i. 
cap. iv, xi. De Orbe Novo decades. Martire, dec. iii. cap. ii, iii, vi, x. 
dec. iv. cap. vi. dec. vii. cap. x. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 229 

Cape St. Augustine, and having loaded with Brazil- 
wood, sailed to Spain. ' 

The greed of gold, silver, and pearls, — the master 
passion governing Spanish capitalists and the horde of 
moneyless adventurers at this time in the New World, — 
was the cause of the fitting out of three vessels, in 1 5 1 7, 
to eo in search of new countries west of the island of 
Cuba. This fleet, under the command of Francisco 
Hernando de Cordoba, set sail, with one hundred and 
ten soldiers, about the beginning of February, from 
San Cristobal, on the north side«of .the island, and after 
a voyage of twenty-one days came in sight of the 
northeastern part of the peninsula of Yucatan, where 
an Indian town was seen, to which the Spaniards gave 
the name El Gran Cairo. Near this place three 
temples, built of stone and lime, were found, in which 
were many clay idols " some of them having terrible 
shapes, seemingly representing Indians committing 
horrible offences. In these temples," says Bernal Diaz 
del Castillo,'' who was connected with the expedition, 
" we also found wooden boxes containing other gods 
with hellish faces, several small shells, some ornaments, 
three crowns, and a number of trinkets, some in the 
shape of fish, others in the shape of ducks, all made of 
an inferior kind of gold. Seeing all these things, the 
gold and the good architecture of the temples, we felt 
overjoyed at the discovery of the country." At a town, 
v/hich the Spaniards called San Lazaro, although they 

' Historia general, Herrera. dec. ii. lib. i. cap. vii. 

^ Bernal Diaz del Castillo, a native of Medina del Campo, Spain, came to 
the New World, in 15 14, with Pedro Arias de Avila, who had been appointed 
governor of Terra Firma. He sailed with Cordoba and Grijalva on their ex- 
peditions of discovery, and was with Cortes in his Mexican campaign, and par- 
ticipated in more than a hundred engagements. He was regidor of the city of 
Guatemala, where, on the twenty-sixth day of February, 1568, he completed 
his True history of the conquest of New Spain. 



230 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

were aware that the Indians called it Campeachy, they 
were invited to land by the inhabitants, " who wore 
fine mantles made of cotton." " They took us " Diaz 
remarks " to some large edifices, which were strongly 
built of stone and lime and were in many ways attrac- 
tive. These were temples, the walls of which were 
covered with figures representing snakes and all kinds 
of gods. About an altar we saw several fresh spots of 
blood. On some of the idols there were fissures like 
crosses. There were some paintings representing 
groups of Indians. All these greatly astonished us, 
for we had neither seen nor heard of such thincfs 
before." 

While the explorers were taking in water, near a 
village called Potonchan, now Champoton, on the 
western side of the peninsula, where there were some 
wells, maize-plantations, and stone buildings, the in- 
habitants visited them. "They all wore cotton cuirasses 
which reached to their knees. They were armed with 
bows, lances, shields, and swords. The latter," Diaz 
further remarks, " were shaped like our broad swords, 
and are wielded with both hands." They also had 
slings for throwing stones. They had bunches of 
feathers on their heads, and had their bodies decorated 
with white, brown, and black colors. Speaking of an 
engagement which the Spaniards had with the natives, 
Diaz says : " As soon as it was daylight we saw more 
companies of armed natives moving toward the coast 
with flags. They wore feather head-dresses, and were 
provided with drums, bows, lances, and shields. They 
joined themselves to the others who had arrived in the 
night. They divided themselves into corps, surrounded 
us on all sides, and began to assail us with so many 
arrows, lances, and stones, that more than eight of our 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 231 

men were wounded in the first onset. They then 
rushed furiously forward and attacked us man to man ; 
some with their lances, others with their swords and 
arrows, and with such terrible impetuosity that we were 
compelled to show them opposition. We dealt them 
many a good thrust and blow, continuing at the same 
time an incessant fire with our matchlocks and cross- 
bows ; for while some loaded others fired. At last, by 
heavy blows and thrusts we forced them back, but they 
did not retreat farther than was necessary to keep 
us strongly surrounded. * * * Perceiving how 
closely we were hemmed in on all sides by the enemy, 
who not only kept getting fresh troops but were plenti- 
fully supplied in the field with meat, drink, and num- 
bers of arrows, we soon concluded that all our valiant 
fighting would not benefit us. All of us were wounded. 
Many were shot through the neck, and more than fifty 
of our men were killed. In this critical position we 
determined to cut our way manfully through the 
enemy's ranks and get to the boats, which fortunately 
lay on the coast near us. We therefore resolutely 
closed our ranks and broke through those of the enemy. 
You should then have heard the whizzing of their 
arrows, the terrible yells of the Indians, and how they 
incited one another to fight. * * * Many of our 
men were wounded while climbing into the vessel, 
especially those who clung to its side, for the Indians 
pursued us in their canoes, and persistently assailed 
us. With the utmost exertion and the help of God 
we escaped from the hands of this people." 

" Our vessels," Diaz further relates, " were taken to 
Santiago of Cuba, where the governor [Diego Velas- 
quez] resided. Here the two Indians were brought on 
shore whom we had taken with us from Punta de 



232 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Cotoche, as already related, called Melchorejo and 
Juanillo. When, however, we brought forth the box 
with the crowns, the golden ducks, the fish, the idols, 
more noise was made about them than they really 
merited, so that they became the common topics of 
conversation throughout the islands of St. Domingo 
and Cuba; indeed, the report concerning them reached 
Spain. There it was said that none of the discovered 
countries were as rich as this one, and in none had 
there been found houses built of stone. The earthen 
gods, it was said, were the heathen relics of ancient 
times ; others ventured to affirm that they [the people 
of Yucatan] were the descendants of the Jews who 
had been shipwrecked off this coast, whom Titus and 
Vespasian had driven from Jerusalem. * * * Diego 
Velasquez closely questioned the two Indians whether 
there were any gold-mines in their country. They 
answered in the affirmative ; and when they were shown 
some of the gold-dust found in the island of Cuba, they 
said there was an abundance of it in their country. 
This was not true, for it is well known that there are 
no gold-mines on the Punta de Cotoche, or anywhere 
in the whole of Yucatan. They were likewise shown 
the beds in which the seeds of that plant are sown 
from whose root the cassava-bread is made, which in 
Cuba is called yiua. They assured us that the same 
plant grew in their country, and was called by them 
tale. As the cassava-root in Cuba is called yucay and 
the ground in which it is planted by the Indians tale, 
so from these two words orio^inated the name of the 
country, Yucatan ; for the Spaniards, vdio were stand- 
ing around the governor at the time that he was speak- 
ing to the two Indians, said : ' You see, sir, they call 
their country Yucatan.' And from this circumstance 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 233 

the country retained the name of Yucatan, although 
the natives call it by a different name." ' 

" It was in the year of our Lord i5i8," says Diaz, 
" after Diego Velasquez had heard the good account 
we gave of the newly-discovered country called Yuca- 
tan, that he determined to send another expedition to 
it. For this purpose he selected four vessels, among 
which were the two in which we soldiers had accom- 
panied Cordoba on our late voyage to Yucatan, pur- 
chased at our expense. * * * Our account that 
the houses in the newly-discovered country were built 
of stone and lime had originated an extraordinary 
conception of its riches, besides the Indian Mel- 
chorejo had indicated by signs that it contained 
gold-mines. All these things created a great desire 
among the inhabitants and soldiers on the island 
[Cuba] who possessed no official authority over the 
Indians to go in search of a rich country like this one ; 
consequently, in a very short time, we mustered two 
hundred and twenty men." 

Commanded by Juan de Grijalva, the vessels sailed 
on the first of May, i5i8,fromtheport of Santiago, Cuba. 
After touching at different points, the fleet at last 
arrived off the coast of Champoton, on the west side 
of Yucatan, where the Indians had attacked the Span- 
iards on the last voyage and had driven them to their 
vessels. Here they had another engagement with the 
natives, but the Spaniard's were victorious and put the 
enemy to flight. They then proceeded southward to 

' Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva Espana. Escrita por el 
Capital! Bernal Diaz del Castillo, vno de sus conquistadores. En Madrid, 1632. 
cap. i-vi. 

Vide The memoirs of the conquistador, Bernal Diaz del Castillo, written 
by himself, containing a true and full account of the discovery and conquest of 
Mexico and New Spain. Translated from the original Spanish by John In- 
grim Lockhart. London, 1844. vol. i. chap. i-vi. 



234 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the bay called La Boca de Terminos, where Diaz relates 
" we found temples built of stone and lime, full of idols 
made of wood or clay, with other figures, some repre- 
senting women, some serpents ; also the horns of 
various kinds of wild animals. We concluded that 
an Indian village was near it. * * * \\[q have, 
however, deceived ourselves, for the district was en- 
tirely uninhabited." 

At a promontory, beyond the bay, tov/ard the 
west, about thirty Indians visited the explorers, bring- 
ing with them broiled fish, fowl, fruit, and maize- 
bread. " They also," Diaz relates, " brought pans 
filled with red-hot embers, on which they strewed 
incense, and perfumed us all. After this ceremony 
was ended they spread some mats on the ground, over 
which they laid a piece of cotton cloth. On this they 
put some trifling ornaments of gold in the shape of 
ducks and lizards, with three necklaces made of gold. 
* * * They next presented us with some man- 
tles and waistcoats, such as they wore, and begged of 
us to accept them, saying that they had no more gold 
to give us, but that farther toward the setting of the 
sun there was a country where it was found in great 
abundance, at the same time often repeating the word 
Culba, and Mexico. We however did not understand 
what they meant." 

At a town called Aguajaluco they saw Indians 
hurrying to and fro with large shields made of large 
tortoise-shells, which glittered so brilliantly in the 
sun that some of the Spaniards thought that they 
were of inferior gold. At an island, beyond one 
which they called Isla Blanca, Diaz relates : " We 
found two houses which were strongly built of stone 
and lime. Both were ascended by flights of steps, and 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 235 

had altars, on which stood several abominable idols, to 
which, on the previous evening, five Indians had 
been sacrificed. Their dead bodies still lay there, cut 
open, with the arms and legs chopped off, while every 
thinof near was besmeared with blood. We contem- 
plated this sight in utter astonishment, and gave the 
island the name of Isla de'los Sacrificios." 

At another island farther to the west, Diaz says : 
" We found a temple on which stood the great 
and abominable-looking god Tetzcatlipuca, surround- 
ed by four Indians, dressed in wide, black cloaks, 
their hair hanging as our canons or Dominicans 
wear it. These were the priests, who had that 
very day sacrificed two boys, whose bodies they 
had cut open and then offered their bleeding hearts 
to this horrible idol. They were about to perfume 
us in the same way they had done their gods ; but 
though the perfume smelled like our incense, we 
would not permit them so shocked we were at the 
sight of the two boys whom they had recently killed, 
and we were disgusted with their abominations. Our 
captain questioned Francisco, the Indian whom we had 
brought with us from the Rio de Banderas, concerning 
the purport of all these things, for he seemed to be an 
intelligent person, we having, at that time, as I have 
already stated, no interpreter. Our captain interro- 
gated him by signs. Francisco answered that this 
sacrifice had been ordered by the people of Culua ; 
but, as it was difficult for him to pronounce this word, 
he repeatedly said, Olua, Olua. In honor of our com- 
mander, whose Christian name was Juan, and as the 
day was the feast of St. John, we gave this small island 
the name of San Juan de Ulua." 

Sailing northward along the coast of Mexico, " we 



236 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

first came," says Diaz, " in sight of Tusta, and two days 
after, of the more elevated mountains of Tuspa, both 
of wliich take their names from two towns close to 
these mountains. Along this part of the coast we saw 
a number of towns lying from six to nine miles inland. 
It is now the province of Panuco." On account of the 
approach of winter, the scarcity of provisions, and the 
leaky condition of one of the vessels, the explorers 
determined to return to Cuba ; Pedro de Alvarador 
having previously set sail for the island. 

Speaking of their subsequent explorations in the 
vicinity of the mouth of the Guacasualco River (now 
called Rio Coatzacoalcos, In Tehuantepec), the Spanish 
writer says : ** As soon as the inhabitants of Guacas- 
ualco and the* neighboring districts learned that we 
offered our goods for barter, they brought us all their 
golden ornaments, and took in exchange green glass 
beads, on which they set a high value. Besides orna- 
ments of gold, each Indian had with him a copper axe, 
which was very highly polished, with the handle curi- 
ously carved, that served equally as an ornament and, 
on the field of battle, as a weapon. At first we thought 
that these axes were made of an inferior kind of gold. 
Therefore we began to take them in exchange, and in 
the space of two days collected more than six hundred, 
with which we were no less pleased, as long as we were 
ignorant of their real value, than the Indians were with 
our glass beads. * * * ^y^ ^^^ g^jj f^^ Cuba, and 
arrived there in the space of forty days. * * * We 
were most graciously welcomed by the governor, Diego 
Velasquez, who was highly delighted with the additional 
gold we brought him. Altogether, it was well worth 
4,000 pesos ; so that, with the 16,000 brought over by 
Alvarado, the whole amounted to 20,000 /)rsos.^ Some 

* " The dollar of exchange Ijieso de platd) is worth 8 reals of old plate, o-t 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 237 

made this sum greater, some less ; but one thingr is 
certain, the crown officials took only the fifth of the 
last-mentioned sum. When they were about to take 
the fifth also of the Indian axes, which we had mis- 
taken for gold, they grew exceedingly angry on finding 
them only to be of a fine quality of copper. This 
caused the people to laugh at our trading transac- 
tions." ' 

Immediately after the return of Juan de Grijalva, 
in i5i8, from this voyage, Diego Velasquez, the 
governor of Cuba, issued orders for the fitting out of 
a larger fleet than the one commanded by the former 
officer. Respecting the person who was to have com- 
mand of this expedition, Diaz says that " the matter 
was secretly settled with Hernando Cortes, by two 
confidants of Diego Velasquez, Andres de Duero, 
secretary to the governor, and Almador de Lares, the 
royal treasurer. * * * Duero and the royal treas- 
urer, therefore, employed all their cunning to influence 
the governor. They took every opportunity of plac- 
ing Cortes in the most favorable light, extolling his 
great courage, in a word, declared him to be the most 
capable person whom he could intrust with the 
command. * * * Their efforts were crowned 
with success, for Diego Velasquez conferred the 
appointment of captain-general of the expedition on 
that gentleman. * * * After Hernando Cortes 
had been appointed captain, he immediately began to 
collect all kinds of arms and ammunition, as match- 
locks, crossbows, powder, and the like. With the same 

15 reals 2 maravedis vellon. * * * The value of the peso of plate, or dol- 
lar of exchange, in English silver coin, is sgid." [about seventy-four cents 
United States money]. — The universal cambist and commercial instructor. 
By Patrick Kelly. London, 1811. vol. i. pp. 388, 389. 

' Histovia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva Espaiia. Diaz. cap. 
viii-xvi. — Vide The memoirs of the conquistador, Lockhart. chap, viii-xvi. 



238 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

diligence he took care to provide a large stock of 
goods to barter, and other necessaries for our expedi- 
tion." On the eighteenth of February, i5i9, the fleet 
was on its way toward the west. On the island of 
Cozumel, near the eastern coast of Yucatan, Cortes re- 
viewed his troops. " Without counting the pilots and 
marines," says Diaz, " our number amounted to five 
hundred and eight men. There were one hundred 
and nine sailors, and sixteen horses. * * * q^j- 
squadron consisted of eleven vessels of different ton- 
naee. * * * The number of crossbow men was 
thirty-three, and of those bearing matchlocks thirteen. 
To these add our heavy guns and four falconets, and 
a great quantity of powder and balls. Respecting the 
precise number of crossbow men I cannot aver, 
though it matters not whether there were a few more 
or less. * * * J have now said all that need be 
respecting our armament ; indeed, Cortes was very 
particular about the merest trifles in these preparations. 
" As Cortes paid attention to every circumstance, 
he ordered me and Martin Camos of Biscay into his 
presence, and asked us what our opinion was of the 
word Castilaiiy Casiilan, which the Indians of Cam- 
peachy had so often repeated when we landed there, 
under the command of Francisco Hernandez de Cor- 
doba. We again informed him of every transaction 
that had taken place there. He said that he had often 
turned this matter over in his mind, and could not help 
thinking but that the inhabitants must have some 
Spaniards among them, and he thought it would not 
be amiss to question the caciques of Cozumel upon this 
subject. This Cortes accordingly did, and desired 
Melchorejo, who by this time had gained some little 
knowledge of the Spanish, and perfecdy understood 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 239 

the language of Cozumel, to question the chiefs about 
it. The statements made by them were aHke, and 
plainly indicated that there were several Spaniards in 
the country, whom they had seen ; that they as slaves 
served the caciques, who lived a march of two days 
inland ; and that it was within a few days that some 
Indian merchants had talked to them." Some days 
afterward Cortes learned that the two Spaniards were 
Geronimo de Aguilar and Gonzalo Guerrero. Aguilar 
being informed of the presence of the Spaniards 
joined them and served Cortes in the important posi- 
tion of an interpreter.^ 

When the Spaniards were in camp at the island of 
San Juan de Ulua, Cortes was visited, on Easter-day, 
by one of the farmer-generals of the Mexican empire, 
named Teuthlllle. " He was accompanied " says Diaz, 
" by another person of distinction called Quitlalpitoc. 
We subsequently learned thatthey were governors of the 
provinces of Cotastlan, Tustepec, Guazpaltepec, Tlata- 
teteclo, and other districts lately subdued. They were 
followed by a great number of Indians carrying presents 
of fowls and plants. Teuthlllle, having ordered the 
others to stand aside, advanced to Cortes and bowed 
three times very reverentially in the Indian fashion, 

* " He said, though still in broken Spanish, that his name was Geronimo 
de Aguilar, and was a native of Ecija. About eight years ago he had been ship- 
wrecked with fifteen men and two women, on a voyage between Darien and the 
island of St. Domingo. * * * fhe ship struck against a rock, and they 
had not been able to get her off again. The whole of the crew then got into 
the boat, with the hope of reaching the island of Cuba or Jamaica, but were 
driven on the coast of Yucatan, where the Calachionies had taken them prisoners 
and distributed them among the people. The most of his unfortunate com- 
panions had been sacrificed to their gods. Some had died of grief and the 
women had pined away, being worn out by the hard labor of grinding which 
they had forced them to do. He had been doomed to be sacrificed to their 
idols, but had made his escape at night, and fled to the cacique, with whom he 
had been living. * * * jje had tried to induce Gonzalo Guerrero to leave 
the Indians, but had failed." 



240 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

which he did when he turned toward us standing 
nearest him. Cortes cordially welcomed them, after 
which he embraced them. He desired them to tarry 
a while and told them that he would o-'ive them a 

o 

definite answer [in reply to the question which their 
sovereign, the great Montezuma,' had sent them to ask : 
who the Spaniards were and what they came to seek 
in his country]. Meanwhile Cortes ordered the altar 
to be arranged as prettily as possible. Francisco 
Bartolome and Father Juan Diaz performed mass. The 
two governors and the principal personages of their 
smle were present during the services, after which 
Cortes partook of dinner with them. 

" After the table had been cleared, Cortes assisted 
by Aguilar and Dona Marina^ entered into conversa- 
tion with the Mexican officials and the caciques, telling 
them, that we were Christians, the subjects of the 
greatest monarch of the world, named Emperor 
Charles,^ that he had many great personages among 
his subjects and servants, that we had come by his 
command to their country, of which and its powerful 
sovereign, who then reigned, his majesty had long 
before heard. Cortes speaking of himself said that he 
was desirous to become the friend of their sovereign, 
arid had to disclose many things to him, in the name 
of his majesty, the emperor, which their monarch would 
listen to with delight. In order that a good under- 
standing might be established between him [Cortes] 
and his [Montezuma's] subjects, they should acquaint 
him with the place where this monarch resided, that 

* The name is spelled by Diaz " Monte9iiina." 

" All Indian woman presented to Cortes by the cacique of Tabasco. She 
had readily learned to speak in Spanish, and being conversant with the language 
of the Mexicans, was of great value to Cortes, who made her his secretary and 
then his mistress. 

* Charles v. ascended the Spanish throne in 1516. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 241 

he [Cortes] might pay his respects to him and make 
the necessary disclosures. Teuthlille answered in a 
rather imperious tone, saying : ' Inasmuch as you 
have lately arrived in this country, it would be more 
becoming that before desiring an interview with my 
monarch, you should accept this present, which we 
have brought you in his name, and then disclose your 
wishes to me.' He then took from a box, a quantity 
of gold-trinkets, of beautiful and artistic workmanship, 
and more than twenty packages of stuffs very prettily 
made of white cotton and feathers. These they pre- 
sented to Cortes, besides various other costly gifts 
which, on account of the number of years that has in- 
tervened, I cannot now remember, together with pro- 
visions, as fowl, fruit, and dried fish. Cortes accepted 
all these with a pleased expression, and presented these 
gentlemen in return with glass beads resembling bril- 
liants, and other things that we had brought from Spain. 
He begged them to request the inhabitants of the dif- 
ferent districts to begin trading with us, for we pos- 
sessed various articles which we desired to exchange 
for gold. This they promised to do. 

" Cortes then ordered an arm-chair, beautifully 
painted and adorned with inlaid work, to be brought, 
also some pieces of precious stones, wrapped in cotton 
cloth, perfumed with musk, a necklace of imitation 
pearls, a scarlet cap, with a medal, on which was repre- 
sented the holy St. George on horseback, with lance 
in hand, killing the dragon. Cortes then addressed 
Teuthlille, and said that he presented the chair to his 
monarch, Montezuma, that he might sit in it when he 
should pay him a visit, and the string of pearls to wind 
around his head on the same occasion, all of which 
presents were from our sovereign, the emperor, who 



242 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

had sent them to Montezuma in token of friendship 
and as a proof of the esteem in which he held him. 
Cortes further remarked that Teuthlille should inform 
us where and when he, Cortes, could personally have 
an audience with the monarch. Teuthlille accepted 
the presents, and said in reply that his master, Monte- 
zuma, as he also was a great monarch, would in turn 
be equally delighted to learn something about our 
great emperor ; that he would hasten to lay the pres- 
ents before him, and to return with his answer. 

" Teuthlille had with him very skillful painters, for 
there were such in Mexico, and he ordered them to 
paint the portrait and entire person of Cortes, with the 
dress he wore ; also the pictures of all the other chief 
officers, the soldiers, our ships, horses, Dona Marina, 
and Aguilar, even our two dogs, the cannon, the balls, 
In short, every thing that they could see that belonged 
to us. The paintings they took along with them to 
show to their monarch." 

After an absence of about six or seven days, Teuth- 
lille returned, as Diaz further observes, " with more 
than a hundred Indian porters, all heavily laden, 
accompanied by a great Mexican cacique, who, in 
countenance, stature, and deportment, greatly resem- 
bled Cortes, and on that account had been selected by 
his monarch to accompany the deputation. For, as it 
was related, when Teuthlille presented the picture 
representing Cortes, all the grandees who were 
present with their monarch, Montezuma, immediately 
observed that he resembled a person of distinction 
named Ouintalbor. This was the same person who 
now accompanied Teuthlille. We therefore called one 
the Cortes of this place, and the other the Cortes of 
. that place. We must now, however, tell what the em- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 243 

bassadors did when they came into the presence of 
Cortes. First of all they touched the ground at his 
feet with their hands. They then perfumed him and 
all the Spaniards who were present, with pans made 
of clay. Cortes gave them a very cordial reception, 
and desired them to sit down at his side. Quintalbor, 
the cacique, was commissioned to discuss matters joint- 
ly with Teuthlille. The two, therefore, told Cortes 
that he was most welcome to visit their. country, and 
after considerable talking on both sides, they produced 
the presents"' sent him by Montezuma. As is further 
related by the Spanish historian, Juan de Torquemada, 
a contemporary of Diaz, " the embassador of Monte- 
zuma ordered mats to be spread on the ground before 
Cortes, and over them some cotton cloth, on which he 
arranged the presents, comprising many cotton shirts, 
and great quantities of other cotton stuffs, beautifully 
manufactured, and interwoven with feathers of the 
most splendid colors. There were shields made of 
the purest white stuffs, decorated with feathers, gold, 
silver, and pearls, surpassing everything in beauty and 
skilled workmanship that ever was seen. There was 
also a helmet, tastefully carved .out of wood, filled with 
grains of gold ; also a casque, made of thin plates of 
gold, decorated with tassels, and with stones resembling 
the emerald. There were numerous large bunches of 
feathers of different colors, set in silver and gold ; 
fans for keeping off flies, made of the rarest feathers ; 
a thousand lockets of gold and silver of the most curious 
and beautiful workmanship ; bracelets and military 
decorations of gold and silver, splendidly embossed 
with green and bright yellow feathers ; leather made 
of deer skin, curried and colored in the best possible 

* Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva Espana. Diaz. cap. 
xix-xxxix. — Fiat The memoirs of the conquistador. Lockhart. chap. xxx-xxxi:c. 



244 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

manner ; shoes and sandals of the same leather, 
sewed with thin gold-wire, and the soles of beautiful 
white and blue stone. There were other kinds of 
shoes, very tastefully made of cotton ; mirrors of mar- 
casite, globular-shaped, of the size of one's fist, and 
most ingeniously set in gold, the small frame itself 
being very valuable, and worthy of the acceptance of 
any crowned head ; coverings and curtains to beds, 
manufactured of variously colored cotton, more glossy 
and of a finer texture than silk ; a number of other gold 
and silver trinkets ; a necklace of gold, decorated with 
more than a hundred emeralds, rubies, and various or- 
naments of gold ; a second necklace of many large 
pearls and emeralds, all of the most exquisite work- 
manship ; numerous gold trinkets in the shape of frogs 
and animals ; jewels in the form of medals. The cases 
were even more valuable than the precious stones they 
contained. There was also a quantity of large and 
small grains of gold. The most valuable of these 
presents, however, were two round plates, one of gold, 
on which was a sun with rays and the zodiac. This 
weighed more than one hundred marks.' The other 
plate was of silver, which in a similar manner repre- 
sented the moon. It weighed about fifty marks. The 
two disks were massive and of the thickness of the 
Spanish coin of four silver reals, and as large as car- 
riage-wheels. Those who saw these splendid presents 
said that, without considering the beautiful workman- 
ship, the value of the gold and silver alone amounted 
to twenty-five thousand castellanos de oro ; so that the 
full value of all these presents may rightly be estimated 
at fifty thousand ducats." ' 

'"The Castilian mark weighs 3557 English troy grains." — The universal 
cambist. Kelly, vol. i. pp. 391, 292. 

Primera parte de los veinle ivn llbros rituales i monarchia Indiana com- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 245 

" When Ouintalbor, the great cacique, and Teuth- 
lille, presented these gifts to Cortes," as Diaz further 
relates, " they begged him to accept of them in the 
same spirit of friendship with which their monarch 
sent them, and to distribute them among his teules.^ 
Thereupon they began to tell what their monarch had 
particularly commissioned them to say, which was as 
follows : ' He, Montezuma, was delighted with the 
arrival of such courageous men in his provinces, for, 
according to the accounts he had received, and judging 
from the occurrence at Tabasco [where Cortes had had 
an engagement with the natives], we certainly must be 

puesto por Juan de Torquemada, En Madrid, 1723. lib. iv. cap. xvii. fol. 
389. 390. 

" The ducat of exchange {ducado de plata) is worth 11 reals, maravedi of 
old plate, or 20 reals 25];| maravedis vellon. * * * xhe value of the 
ducat of plate in English silver coin is 4^. t\d. [or one dollar and one cent in 
United States moneyj. " — The universal cambist. Kelly, vol. i. pp. 38S-392. 

Diaz gives this description of the presents : " The first was a disk about 
the size of a carriage-wheel, representing the sun, the entire plate being of the 
finest gold and of the most beautiful workmanship, — a most extraordinary work 
of art, which, according to the account of those who weighed it, was worth more 
than twenty thousand pesos de oro. The second was a disk, even larger than 
the former, of massive silver, representing the moon, with rays and figures on 
it, and of great value. The third was a casque, filled with grains of pure gold 
as they were found in the mine, worth about three thousand /^jcij, which gold 
was of more importance to us than if it had been ten times this value, for we 
were now assured that there were rich gold-mines in the country. Among the 
other presents there were thirty golden ducks in every way resembling the living 
fowl, very elaborately made. Besides, there were figures of lions, tigers, dogs, 
and monkeys. There were also ten chains with lockets, all of gold, and of the 
most costly workmanship ; a bow with the string and twelve arrows ; two staffs 
like those used by justices, five palms in length ; all of which were made of the 
purest gold. They also brought small cases containing the most beautiful green 
feathers, interwoven with gold and silver, and fans similarly made, and figures 
of all kinds of game made of gold." 

Peter Martyr, who had inspected the presents, says : "Si quid unquam 
honoris humana ingenia in huiuscejnodi ariibus sunt adepta, principaiiun iitre 
merito isia consequentur. Aurum, gemniasqiie non admiror quidem, qua irtdus- 
tria, quove studio superet opus mater iam, slupeo. Mille figiiras et fades mille 
prospexi quae scribera nequeo. Quid oculos hominum sua pulchritudine aeqtte 
possit allice7-e meo iudiciovidimmquam. — De Orbe Novo decades, dec. i. cap. xi. 

' Teules, according to Diaz, meant gods or celestial beings. 



246 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

brave men. He wished very much to see our great 
emperor who was so powerful, of whom, although 
residing at so great a distance, he had already gained 
some knowledge, and he would send him a present of 
some valuable stones. He was likewise ready to 
furnish us with every thing we might require during 
our stay. Respecting Cortes visiting him, the under- 
taking should not engage our thoughts, for it was not 
necessary, and would be attended with great diffi- 
culties.' 

" Cortes thanked them most sincerely for their 
kindness, gave each several shirts made of Holland 
linen, some blue beads, and other trifles, and requested 
them when they returned to their great monarch to 
tell him that our emperor and master would deem it 
very unkind, after we had come from such distant 
countries and crossed such vast seas, solely with the 
intention of paying our respects to Montezuma, if we 
returned without accomplishing this object. He 
wished, therefore, to proceed to his residence, and 
to receive personally his commands. The embassadors 
answered that they would convey these messages to 
their monarch, and that a visit to him was unnecessary. 
Cortes thereupon gave them out of our poverty a cup 
of Florentine workmanship, gilded and ornamented 
with wreaths of leaves in relief, and the shirts made of 
Holland linen, and other things, all of which were to 
be presented to Montezuma, together with Cortes's 
message. The two emissaries then departed, while 
Quitlalpitoc alone remained behind in our camp, com- 
missioned, as it appeared, by the two other officials of 
Montezuma, to provide provisions for us from the 
neighboring districts. 

"After the Mexican embassadors had taken their 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 247 

departure, Cortes ordered two vessels to sail farther 
northward and explore the coast. The command of 
these was given to Francisco de Montejo, with orders 
to follow the same course taken by Grijalva. * * * 
Montejo departed, and sailed to the Rio Grande, near 
Panuco, as far as we had gone with Grijalva. On 
account of the strong currents he could not proceed 
any farther. He therefore returned to San Juan de 
Ulua. * * * 

" One morning the Indians, who had dwelt near us 
in huts, and had furnished us with provisions and 
brought gold to barter, secretly departed with Quitlal- 
pitoc. This, we subsequently learned, was done by 
the orders of Montezuma. He had forbidden all inter- 
course with Cortes, believing that he was obeying the 
commands of his idol-gods. These were named Tetz- 
catlipuca and Huitzilopochtli ; the former being the 
god of hell, and the latter the god of war, to whom 
Montezuma daily sacrificed a number of children in 
order that the gods might disclose to him what he 
should do with us. He intended to take us prisoners 
should we not re-embark — employing some to educate 
children, and sacrificing the others. His idol-gods, as 
we afterward learned, advised him not to listen to 
Cortes, and to pay no attention to the message that 
we had sent him respecting the cross and the image of 
the Blessed Virgin. This was what caused his men to 
go away so secretly. 

" This being the condition of affairs, we daily ex- 
pected that hostilities would begin, and we were 
therefore the more vigilant. It happened one day, 
while I was standing sentinel on the sand-hills with 
another soldier, that we espied five Indians coming 
along the shore. Not to alarm the camp with so 



248 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

trifling- a matter, we allowed them to advance. They 
all appeared very good-humored, made their obeisance 
to us after their fashion, and requested us, by signs, to 
conduct them to the camp. Thereupon I said to my 
companion : ' I will take them there, while you remain 
where you are,' for at that time my legs were not so 
infirm as they are now, in my old age. When I pre- 
sented them to Cortes, they manifested the utmost 
reverence, and continually repeated the word Lopchtcio, 
Lopelucio, which in the Totonac language means lord, 
great god. In dress and language these people 
differed entirely from the Mexicans whom Montezuma 
had sent to our camp. They had large holes bored in 
their under-lips, in which they wore pieces of a 
speckled, blue stone, or thin plates of gold. The holes 
in their ears were quite large, from which depended 
similar ornaments. Neither Aguilar nor Dona Marina 
understood their language. The latter asked them 
whether there were any naeyavatos or interpreters 
with them. Thereupon two of them answered that 
they understood the Mexican language. Then the 
talking began. They bid us welcome, and said that 
their ruler had sent them to inquire who we were, and 
that he would be delighted to be of any use to such 
powerful men as we were. They said that they would 
have waited on us earlief, if they had not shunned the 
people of Culhua, namely, the Mexicans (meaning as 
much as villains), who had been with us. It is likely 
that these people had heard of our battles at Tabasco 
and Potonchan. They at least knew that the Mexi- 
cans had secretly departed from us three days before 
this time. Cortes learned many things from them 
which were of the greatest importance to him, particu- 
larly the information respecting the enemies and oppo- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 249 

nents of Montezuma. Cortes, therefore, was very 
friendly to these people. He gave them a number of 
presents, and desired them to return to their ruler and 
to tell himthat he would in person shortly visit him." 

The indomitable commander now advanced north- 
ward along the coast as far as Chiahuitzla, near the 
roadstead where his ships were anchored. A short 
distance from this place Cortes began to build the city 
to which he gave the name Villa Rica de Vera Cruz 
(the Rich Town of the True Cross). From the port of 
the new city, Cortes, on the twenty-sixth of July, i5ig, 
dispatched a ship to Spain, under the command of 
Alonso Puertocarrero and Francisco de Montejo, car- 
rying letters to the emperor, Charles V., with accounts 
of the invasion of New Spain. With these communi- 
cations were sent some of the presents that Cortes had 
received, besides several cotton and agave-scrolls of 
Mexican hierogylphics. " Our agents took charge of 
the letters," Diaz remarks, " and were bound by a 
promise not to touch at the Havannah under any pre- 
text whatever, or to enter the harbor of El Marien, 
where Francisco de Montejo had possessions. This 
was done in order that Diego Velasquez might not 
receive any intelligence of our movements." 

The resolute officer, having ordered his ships to 
be destroyed, began about the middle of August his 
march toward the city of Mexico,^ with his small band 
of about five hundred followers, fifteen horsemen, and 
seven pieces of artiller}^ He took with him thirteen 
hundred native warriors from Cempoalla, besides a 
thousand porters to transport the camp-baggage, pro- 
visions, and munition. 

' From Villa Rica de Vera Cruz to the city of Mexico the distance waS 
about one hundred and seventy-five miles. By the route of the Mexican rail- 
road the distance from the present city of Vera Cruz to the city of Mexico is 
two hundred and sixty-three miles. 



250 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. . 

In the province of Xocotlan the invaders came to 
an Indian town called by the Spaniards Castilblanco, 
governed by a cacique who was subject to Montezuma. 
The hospitable ruler described to Cortes the situation 
of the city of Mexico, which was built on an island 
surrounded by water, and approachable on foot by 
three bridged causeways. 

"A certain place in this province," says Diaz, " I 
shall never forget. Here a vast number of human 
skulls were piled in the best manner imaginable. 
There must have been more than one hundred thou- 
sand ; I repeat, more than one hundred thousand. In 
the same orderly way the remaining human bones 
were piled in another corner of the square. The latter 
it would have been impossible to count. Besides these 
bones there were human heads hanging from beams 
on both sides of the square." On the first, second, and 
fifth days of September, near the village of Tehuaca- 
cinco, Cortes had victorious engagements with the 
Tlascallans. 

" It also happened," Diaz further remarks, " that 
the powerful king of Mexico, Montezuma, either in the 
great goodness of his heart, or because he began to 
fear our approach to his metropolis, dispatched five 
men of distinction to our camp in the province of 
Tlascalla to congratulate us on our advance, and to 
assure us of the great delight he felt when he heard of 
the splendid victories we had gained over such large 
armies. This message was sent with a valuable pres- 
ent of gold trinkets, differently elaborated, worth about 
one thousand pesos, and also packages of cotton stuffs, 
as much as twenty men could carry. He also wished 
us to know, that it was his desire to become a subject 
of our emperor, that he was greatly pleased to learn 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 251 

tl^.at we were so near his metropolis, and that he was 
every way well-disposed toward Cortes and all the 
icicles, his brothers. He likewise wished to be told by 
us what annual tribute in gold, silver, jewels, and cot- 
ton stuffs he was to forward to our great emperor, 
which tribute would save us the trouble of comino- to 
Mexico, adding that he should indeed be pleased to 
see us, but that our march would be a hazardous un- 
dertakingthrough a sterile and rocky country, and that 
the fatigues which we should have to undergo grieved 
him the more when he considered how impossible it 
was for him to remove the hindrances from the way," 
Cortes shortly afterward marched into the city of 
Tlascalla, where, when they entered it, " the streets 
and balconies could scarcely contain the number of 
men and women " who welcomed them. " Delio-ht 
was depicted on every countenance," and " twenty 
baskets full of roses " were " presented to Cortes and 
the soldiers, whom the citizens thought were officers, 
and particularly to those who were on horseback." 
Here Cortes was told by one of the principal men of 
the place " that Montezuma had strong garrisons in 
every town, besides the warriors who marched out 
from the metropolis to the field of battle. Every 
province was compelled to pay him tribute in gold, 
silver, feathers, precious stones, cotton stuffs, as well 
as Indians of both sexes, some of whom he took Into 
his service, and some he sacrificed. He was a mon- 
arch so powerful and wealthy that he accomplished 
and obtained all he desired. His palaces were filled 
with riches and chalchihuis stones,' which he seized 
wherever he went. In short, all the wealth of the 
country was In his possession." 

' A stone of a light green color. 



252 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Cortes was further told that the city of Mexico 
" was abundantly supplied with fresh water from the 
spring of Chapultepec, which was about two miles 
from the city, whence the water was partly conveyed 
to the houses by means of pipes, and partly in boats 
through the canals, when it was sold in small quanti- 
ties to the inhabitants. Respecting the weapons of 
this nation, they included two-edged lances that were 
projected by means of a thong and penetrated any 
cuirass. The warriors were excellent marksmen with 
the bow and arrow, and carried pikes with blades of 
flint, which were very ingeniously made, and were as 
sharp as razors. Besides these weapons, they carried 
shields, and wore cotton cuirasses. There was also a 
great number of sllngers, who were provided with 
round stones, long pikes, and sharp swords which were 
wielded with both hands. 

" To explain all these things, the caciques ex- 
hibited large pieces of ncquen,^ on which were pic- 
tured their battles and their art of warfare. When 
Cortes and we considered that we had gained suffi- 
cient information concerning these things, the conver- 
sation turned to subjects of greater importance. Our 
friends told us how and whence they came into this 
country, and how they settled there ; how it had hap- 
pened, notwithstanding their nearness to the Mexi- 
cans, that they resembled them so little, and lived in 
perpetual warfare with each other. A tradition was 
also handed down from their forefathers that in 
ancient times a race of men and women lived here 
who were immense in stature with large bones, and 
who were a very bad and evil-disposed people, 
whom they had mostly exterminated by continual war, 

' Paper made from the leaves of the maguey or agave-plant. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 253 

and the few that had been spared, had in the course 
of time died. 

" In order to give us a conception of the huge 
frames of these people, they dragged forth a bone, or 
rather a thigh-bone, of one of the giants, which was very- 
strong, and measured the length of a man of good 
stature. This bone was still entire from the knee to 
the hip-joint. I measured it with my own person, and 
found it to be of my own length, although I am a man 
of considerable height. They showed us many similar 
pieces of bones, but they were all worm-eaten and de- 
cayed. We, however, did not doubt for a moment, 
that the country was once inhabited by giants. Cortes 
remarked that we ought to forward these bones 
to his majesty in Spain at the very earhest oppor- 
tunity." 

Montezuma agfain sent embassadors to Cortes 
bearing presents. They said " that their monarch 
could not but feel astonished that we " as Diaz re- 
lates, " had made so long a stay among a poor and 
uncivilized people, who were not fit for slaves, but so 
viciously disposed, so treacherous and thievish, that 
some day or night when we least apprehended it they 
would kill us merely for the sake of plunder. Monte- 
zuma begged us to visit his city, where, at least, we 
might enjoy the good things it offered, even though 
these should be below our deserts, and not equal to 
what he could wish. * * * Cortes thanked the 
embassadors in a very flattering manner for their 
civilities and the expressions of friendship they had 
conveyed to him from their monarch, and he desired 
them to tell their sovereign that in a short time he 
would pay his respects to him." 

At Cholula, to which Cortes next marched, a plot 



254 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

was concocted to kill the Spaniards, but being warned, 
they were on their guard and severely punished the 
inhabitants for their treacherous conduct." Describing 
the city, Diaz says : " Cholula had more than a hundred 
very high towers, they were all cites or temples, in 
which human sacrifices were offered and idols stood. 
The principal temple was even higher than the one in 
the city of Mexico, though the latter was really mag- 
nificent and very high. The temple [at Cholula] is 
said to have contained one hundred courts, and an 
idol of enormous dimensions, (the name of which I 
have forgotten), which was in great repute, and people 
came from various places to sacrifice human beings to 
it and brinof offerinofs for the dead. I well remember 
when we first entered the city and beheld the elevated 
white temples, how the whole place reminded us all of 
Valladolid.' * * * j must add a word or two re- 
specting the wooden cages we saw in this city. They 
were constructed of heavy timber, and filled with grown 
men and little boys, who were fattening for the sacri- 
fices and feasts. Cortes ordered these diabolical cages 
to be pulled down, and sent the prisoners to their 
homes." 

While Cortes was on his way to the city of Mexico 
from Cholula, another embassy from Montezuma biet 
him, bringing him again presents of gold and cotton 
fabrics. Montezuma desired the embassadors to 
express his regrets for the many hardships which 
Cortes was compelled to endure on his wearisome 
journey to see his person, that he would send to the 
port on the coast a great quantity of gold, silver, and 
jewels for the emperor, that he would present Cortes 

' Cortes conjectured the city contained twenty thousand houses. The 
temple of Quetzaicoall was built on a terraced mound about two hundred feet 
high, and was reached by ascending one hundred and twenty steps. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 255 

himself with four loads of gold, and one load for each 
of his companions, but that he forbade him to enter 
the city of Mexico, as all his troops were under arms 
to oppose him. " On this occasion " says Diaz, " Cortes 
again told the embassadors that he was surprised that 
their sovereign, who had called himself our friend so 
often and was so powerful a monarch, should so fre- 
quently change his mind, to desire a thing one day 
and not want it the next. Respecting the presents of 
gold for our emperor and ourselves, Cortes told them 
that we were thankful for Montezuma's kind inten- 
tions, and also for the gifts they brought with them, 
and that he would certainly some day render their 
monarch valuable services in return. He asked them 
if it were right after we had advanced within so short 
a distance of the metropolis to return home without 
fulfilling our monarch's commission. He said that 
Montezuma should place himself in our position and 
consider, had he sent embassadors to a monarch of his 
own rank, whether he would be pleased, if they re- 
turned home after going almost to his palace without 
seeing that monarch or fulfilling their commission to 
him. * * * Therefore he begged that their mon- 
arch would not thereafter send any more embassadors 
with such messages. Cortes further said that he was 
determined to see and speak to Montezuma per- 
sonally, and to inform him of the object of our mission. 
All that we asked w^as only an audience, for the 
moment our stay in his metropolis became Irksome to 
him we would depart and return to the place whence 
we had come. * * * "With this answer Cortes 
sent the embassadors back to their monarch, and we 
continued our march. * * * 

" After Montezuma learned our answer to his mes- 



256 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

sage he dispatched his nephew, Cacamatzin, prince of 
Tezcuco, to us, in great pomp to bid us welcome. 
■■i-. ♦ * 'pj-jg conference being ended, we continued 
our march. We were accompanied by the caciques 
and their numerous attendants, besides all the inhabi- 
tants of the neighborhood, who had come to meet us, 
so that we could hardly move for the vast crowds of 
people. 

" The next morning we reached the broad high 
road of Iztapalapan, from which we for the first time 
beheld the number of cities and villages built in the 
lake [of Tezcuco], and the still greater number of large 
towns on the main-land and along the level causeway, 
which ran in a straight line to the city of Mexico. 
Our astonishment was exceedingly great, and we could 
not but remark to one another, that all the buildings 
resembled the fairy castles of which we read in Amadis 
of Gaul ; so high, majestically, and splendidly did the 
temples, towers, and houses of the city, all built of 
massive stone and lime, rise above the water of the 
lake. Indeed, many of our men believed what they 
saw was the creation of a dream. And the reader 
must not be surprised at the manner in which I have 
expressed myself, for it is impossible to speak com- 
posedly of things which we have never before seen or 
heard of, or could have dreamed of. * * * We 
now entered the city of Iztapalapan, where we were 
quartered in palaces of large dimensions surrounded 
by spacious courts, and built of hewn stone, cedar, and 
other sweet-scented wood. All the apartments were 
curtained with cotton drapery. 

" After we had seen all these things we visited the 
gardens adjoining the palaces, which were so exceed- 
ingly attractive that I could not gratify myself enough 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 257 

by walking about in them and contemplating the num- 
ber of trees which exhaled the most delightful odors, 
and the rose-bushes, the different flower-beds, and the 
fruit-trees which stood along the paths. Here was a 
pond of fresh water connected with the lake by a small 
canal. The canal was constructed of stone of different 
colors, and decorated with numerous figures, and was 
wide enough to hold the laro-est canoes. In the basin 
various kinds of water-fowl were swimminof to and 
fro, and every thing was so charming and so beautiful 
that we could find no words to express our astonish- 
ment. * * * But now there is not a vestiee of all 
these things remaining, and not a stone of the beauti- 
ful city left in its place. * * * Iztapalapan was a 
city of considerable magnitude, built partly in the 
water and partly on the land. Its site is now all dry 
land, and where vessels once sailed to and fro seeds 
are sown and harvests gathered. Indeed, the whole 
face of the country is so completely changed that he 
who had not seen these places previously, would hardly 
believe that waves had once rolled over the spot where 
fertile maize-plantations are now, so wonderfully has 
every thing been changed here in a short space of 
time. 

" On the following morning we left Iztapalapan, ac- 
companied by all the principal caciques already men- 
tioned. The road on which we marched was eight 
paces wide, and, if I rightly remember, ran straight 
to the city of Mexico. Notwithstanding the breadth 
of the causeway it was much too narrow for the great 
throngs of people that were constantly arriving from 
different places to gaze at us, and we could hardly 
move forward. Besides the tops of all the temples and 
towers were crowded with spectators, and below them 



258 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the lake was covered with canoes filled with Indians, 

for all the people were eager to catch a glimpse of us. 

And who can wonder at this curiosity, for neither rpen 

like us nor horses had ever been seen here before. 

" When we surveyed all this splendor we scarcely 

knew what to think, and we doubted whether all that 

we beheld were real. A succession of large cities 

stretched along the banks of the lake [of Tezcuco], 

from which much larger ones rose magnificently above 

the water. Innumerable canoes were plying near us. 

At regular intervals we crossed new brido-es, and be- 
ts o 

fore us lay the great city of Tenustitlan Mexico in all 
its grandeur.' And we, who were beholding this 
spectacle, who were passing through this dense con- 
course of human beings, were a mere handful of men, 
in all four hundred and fifty, our minds filled with the 
warnings of the inhabitants of Huexotzinco, Tlascalla, 
and Tlalmanalco, and the caution they had given us 
not to expose our lives to the treachery of the Mexi- 
cans. I ask the kind reader to reflect a moment, and 
then to say whether he believes any men in this world 
ever attempted so bold an undertaking. 

" When we had arrived at a place where another 
narrow causeway led toward Cojohuacan we were met 
by a number of caciques and distinguished personages, 
all attired in rich raiment. They had been dispatched 
by Montezuma to meet us and bid us welcome in his 
name. As a manifestation of their good-will they 
touched the ground with their hands and kissed it. 
We now halted for a few minutes to permit the princes 

' The name of the city is written Tenustitlan Mexico by Diaz. It is 
spelled Tenuchlitlan Mexico by some Spanish writers. 

" In the spelling of the names of Indian chiefs, the townships, and of the 
provinces, we have mostly followed Torquemada, who is considered more cor- 
rect on this point, for he lived fifty years in New Spain." — The memoirs of the 
conquistador. Lockhart. Preface, vol. i. p. vi. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 



259 



of Tezcuco, Iztapalapan, Tlacupa, and Cojohuacan, to 
get in advance to meet Montezuma, who was slowly 
approaching, surrounded by other grandees of the kino-- 
dom, seated in a splendid portable chair. When 
we arrived at a place near the city, where there 
were several towers, the monarch raised himself 
in his chair, supported by a number of distinguished 
caciques, who held over his head a canopy of very 
great value, decorated with green feathers, gold, silver, 
chalchihuis stones and pearls. The bordering of the 
canopy ornamented with these things was exceedingly 
attractive. 

" Montezuma, according to his habit, was richly 
attired. His half boots were profusely decorated with 
jewels, the soles were of solid gold. The four grandees 
who supported him were also richly clad. They must 
have put on this clothing somewhere on the road, 
before they went to attend Montezuma, for they were 
not so magnificently dressed when they first came to 
meet us. Besides these distinguished caciques, there 
were many other grandees around the monarch, some 
of whom held the canopy over his head while others 
again occupied the road before him, and spread cot- 
ton cloths that his feet might not touch the bare 
ground. No one of his attendants ever looked at 
him full in the face. Every one in his presence stood 
with eyes downcast, and it was only his four nephews 
and cousins, who supported him, that dared to look up. 

" When it was announced to Cortes that Montezu- 
ma was approaching, he alighted from his horse and 
advanced to meet him. Many compliments passed 
between them. Montezuma welcomed Cortes, who, 
through Dona Marina, said, in turn, that he hoped his 
majesty was in good health. If I still remember rightly. 



26o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Cortes, who had Dona Marina next to him, wished to 
concede the place of honor to the monarch, who, how- 
ever, would not accept of it, but yielded it to Cortes, 
who then took a necklace of precious stones of very 
beautiful colors and shapes, strung upon gold wire and 
perfumed with musk, and placed it on the neck of Mon- 
tezuma. Our commander was then about to embrace 
him, but the grandees, who surrounded Montezuma, 
held back Cortes's arms, for they considered the act 
improper. Our general then desired Dona Marina to 
tell the monarch that he [Cortes] congratulated him- 
self exceedingly on his good fortune of having seen so 
powerful a monarch face to face, and to thank him for 
the honor of coming to meet us. Montezuma replied 
in very appropriate words, and ordered his two 
nephews, the princes of Tezcuco and Cojohuacan, to 
conduct us to our quarters. He then returned to the 
city, accompanied by his two other relatives, the princes 
of Cuitlahuac and Tlacupa, and the other grandees of 
his large retinue. As they passed, we observed how 
all those who composed his majesty's escort held their 
heads bent forward, no one daring to lift up his eyes in 
his presence, and also the deep veneration with which 
he was reo-arded. * * * 

" We were quartered in a large building where there 
was room enough for us all. "" * * Near it were 
temples and Mexican idols. This building had been 
purposely selected for us because we were termed 
teules, or were thought to be, and that we might dwell 
among the gods as among our equals. The apart- 
ments and halls were very spacious, and those set 
apart for our general were furnished with carpets. 
Each one of us had a separate bed, which could not 
have been better furnished for a gentleman of the first 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 261 

rank. Each apartment was swept clean, and the walls 
were newly plastered and decorated. 

" When we had entered into the great court-yard of 
this palace, Montezuma came to Cortes, and, taking 
him by the hand, conducted him to the apartments 
where he was to lodge, which had been prettily deco- 
rated after the fashion of the country. He then hung 
about his neck a chased necklace of gold, most curi- 
ously wrought with figures of crabs. The Mexican 
grandees were greatly amazed at all these uncommon 
favors which their monarch bestowed upon our gen- 
eral. 

" Cortes returned the monarch many thanks for so 
much kindness, and the latter took leave of him with 
these words : ' Malinche,' you and your brothers 
must now do as if you were at home, and take some 
rest after the fatigues of the journey.' He then re- 
turned to his palace, which was near." This was on 
the eighth of November, i5ig. Later in the day 
Montezuma again visited Cortes, and held a long con- 
versation with him. On the following day Cortes had 
an audience with Montezuma in his palace. 

" The mighty Montezuma," Diaz further observes, 
" may have been about this time in the fortieth year of 
his age. He was tall, slender, and thin ; but his body 
was well-proportioned. His complexion was not very 
brown, almost the same as that of the inhabitants. 
His hair was not long, excepting where it hung thickly 
over his ears, which were hid by it. His black beard, 
though thin, was handsome. His face was somewhat 
long, but he had a cheerful countenance, and his fine 

'This name, says Diaz, was given to Cortes "because our interpreter, 
Dona Marina, was always near him, particularly when embassadors arrived, 
and in our negotiations with the different caciques she interpreted for both 
parties. They therefore called him the captain of Marina, and contracted that 
appellation into the word Malinche." 



262 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

eyes had an expression of amiability or of ill-will 
according to his humor. He was particularly clean in 
appearance, and took a bath every evening. Besides 
a number of concubines, who were all daughters of 
note and rank, he had two lawful wives of royal ex- 
traction, whom, however, he visited secretly without 
any one daring to observe him, except his most confi- 
dential servants. * * * jj^ ^.j^^ hslls adjoining his 
private apartments there was always a guard of two 
thousand men of high station in waiting, with whom, 
however, he never held any conversation unless to give 
them orders or to receive some intelligence from them. 
* * * In cold weather when he dined a large fire was 
made of the charcoal of the bark of trees, which emitted 
no smoke but a delightful perfume. That his majesty 
might not feel any discomfort from the heat of the fire, 
a screen was placed between him and it, made of gold, 
and adorned with the different figures of their gods. 
The chair on which he sat was somewhat low. It was 
filled with soft cushions and beautifully carved. The 
table was higher, and suited to the seat. The former 
was covered with white cloths, one of which was large. 
Four very neat and pretty women held before the 
monarch a round pitcher, called by them xicales, 
filled with water to wash his hands. The wate^ was 
caught in other vessels, and then the young women 
presented him with towels to dry his hands. Two other 
women brouQrht him maize-bread baked with eees. 
Before Montezuma began to dine, a wooden screen, 
elaborately gilded, was placed before him, that no one 
might see him while eating. Then the young women 
stood at a distance. Four elderly men of high rank 
came to his table, whom he addressed from time to 
time , or asked them some question. Sometimes he 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 263 

would offer them a plate of his food, which was consid- 
ered a mark of great favor. The gray-haired, aged 
men, that were so highly honored, were, as we subse- 
quently learned, his nearest relatives, his most trust- 
worthy counsellors, and chief justices. Whenever he 
ordered any viands to be given them, they ate stand- 
ing with the greatest reverence, not daring to look at 
him full in the face. The dishes in which the food was 
served were of variegated and black porcelain, made at 
Cholula. While the monarch was at table his courtiers 
and those who were waiting in the adjoining halls 
maintained strict silence. * * * 

" Sometimes during dinner he had ugly hump- 
backed dwarfs to act as buffoons and perform antics 
for his amusement. At other times he had jesters 
to enliven him with their witticisms. Others again 
danced and sung before him. Montezuma took great 
delight in these entertainments, and ordered the 
broken victuals and pitchers of cacao-liquor (choco- 
late) to be distributed among the performers. When 
he had dined the four women took away the cloths 
and brouo^ht him water to wash his hands. Durino- 
this interval he conversed a little with the four old 
men, and then left the table to enjoy his afternoon- 
sleep. 

" After the monarch had dined, dinner was served 
for the men on duty and the other officers of his house- 
hold. I often counted more than one thousand dishes 
on the table of the kinds already mentioned. Then 
followed, according to the Mexican custom, the froth- 
ing" i^S^ of cacao-liquor, as many as two thousand, 
after which came different kinds of fruit in ereat abun- 
dance. Then the women dined who superintended 
the baking department, and those who made the cacao- 



264 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

liquor, with the young women who waited upon the 
monarch. * * * 

" Besides these servants were many butlers, house- 
stewards, treasurers, cooks, and superintendents of 
maize-magazines. '^' * '"'' I had almost forgotten 
to mention, that while the monarch dined two other 
young women of great beauty brought him small 
cakes, as white as snow, made of eggs and other 
nourishing ingredients, on plates covered with clean 
napkins ; also a long-shaped loaf made of very sub- 
stantial things, and pachol (a wafer-cake). They then 
brought him three beautifully painted and gilded tubes 
filled with liquid-amber and an herb called by the In- 
dians tabaco. After the dinner had been removed and 
the sineinof and dancinor ended, one of these tubes was 
lighted. The monarch drew the smoke into his mouth, 
and after he had done this a short time he would fall 
asleep. 

" At this time a celebrated cacique, whom we called 
Topia, was Montezuma's chief steward. He kept an 
account of the whole of Montezuma's revenue, in large 
books of paper which the Mexicans called amatl. A 
house was filled with these large account-books. 

" Montezuma had also two arsenals filled with arms 
of all kinds, many of which were ornamented with'gold 
and precious stones. The arms comprised shields of 
different sizes, swords, and a broad-sword wielded with 
both hands, the edge of flint so extremely sharp that 
the swords cut much better than our Spanish ones. 
There were also lances, longer than ours, pointed at 
the end, a fathom long, set with several sharp flints. 
The pikes are so very sharp and hard that they will 
pierce the strongest shield, and cut like a razor ; so 
that the Mexicans even shave themselves with these 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 265 

flints. There were also excellent bows and arrows, 
pikes with single and double points, and suitable thongs 
to project them ; slings, with round stones purposely 
made for them ; also large shields, so ingeniously made 
that they could be rolled up when not wanted. These 
shields are unrolled on the field of battle, and com- 
pletely cover the whole body from the head to the 
feet. We also saw a great many kinds of cuirasses 
made of quilted cotton, which were adorned on the 
outside with soft feathers of different colors, and looked 
like uniforms. We also saw morions and helmets con- 
structed of wood and bones, adorned with feathers. 
There were artificers always at work, who continually 
augmented this store of arms ; and the arsenals were 
under the care of certain persons, who also superin- 
tended the manufacturing departments. * * * 

'* I will now advert to another subject, and acquaint 
my readers with the fine arts of the Mexicans. I will 
first speak of the sculptors, and the gold and silver- 
smiths who were skillful in working and smelting gold. 
The latter would have astonished the most celebrated 
of our Spanish goldsmiths. They were many, and the 
most expert lived at a place called Ezcapuzalco, about 
four miles from Mexico. The next in proficiency were 
very skillful masters in cutting and polishing precious 
stones and the calchihttis stone, which resembles the 
emerald. These were followed by the great masters 
in painting, and the decorators in feathers, and the 
wonderful sculptors. Even now there are still living 
in Mexico three Indian artists, named Marcos de 
Aguino, Juan de la Cruz, and El Crespello, who 
severally have attained so high a place in the art of 
painting and sculpture, that each may be compared to 
an Apelles, or to our contemporaries, Michael Angelo 
and [Alonso] Berruguette. 



266 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" The women were remarkably skillful in weaving 
and embroidery, and they made quantities of the 
finest stuffs, interwoven with feathers. The common 
stuffs for daily use came from certain districts in the 
province of Costatlan, which lay on the north coast, 
not far from Vera Cruz, where we first landed with 
Cortes. 

" The concubines in the palace of Montezuma, who 
were all daughters of distinguished men, were em- 
ployed in manufacturing the most beautiful stuffs, inter- 
woven with feathers. Similar fabrics were made by 
certain women who dwelt secluded in cloisters as our 
nuns. * ^= * Montezuma had in his service a 
great number of stone-cutters, masons, and carpenters, 
who were only employed about the royal palaces. Here 
I must not forget to speak of his gardens for the 
cultivation of flowers, trees and vegetables, of which 
there were various kinds. In these gardens were 
many baths, wells, basins, and ponds full of limpid water, 
which regularly ebbed and flowed. These gardens 
were made more attractive by innumerable species of 
small birds, which sang among the trees. The gardens 
of medicinal plants and vegetables may also be men- 
tioned. They were cultivated by a large body of gar- 
deners. All the baths, wells, ponds and buildings were 
substantially constructed of stone, as were also the 
theatres where the singers and dancers performed. 

" We had been four days in the city of Mexico," 
Diaz further remarks, " and neither our commander 
nor any of us had, during this time, left our quarters, 
except to visit the gardens and buildings adjoining 
the palace. Cortes therefore determined to view the 
city, and to visit the great market and the chief temple 
of Huitzilopochtli. He accordingly sent Geronimo de 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 267 

Aguilar, Dona Marina, and one of his pages, named 
Orteguilla, who, by this time, understood a little of the 
Mexican language, to Montezuma, to request his per- 
mission to inspect the different buildings of the city. 
Montezuma readily granted us permission to go where 
we pleased, although he was apprehensive that we 
might intentionally injure the one or the other of his 
idols. He therefore determined to accompany us with 
some of his principal officers, and, for this purpose, left 
his palace with a showy retinue. * * * 

" Our commander, attended by the greater part of 
our horsemen and foot-soldiers, all well armed, as we 
were at all times, proceeded to the Tlatelulco. By com- 
mand of Montezuma, a number of caciques met us on 
our way thither. When we arrived in this immense 
market, we were greatly astonished to see the vast 
number of people, the profusion of merchandise ex- 
posed for sale, and the admirable police-system, and 
the order that everywhere existed. The grandees 
who accompanied us drew our attention to the smallest 
circumstance, and gave us an explanation of all we 
saw. Each class of merchandise had a separate place 
for its sale. We first visited those divisions of the 
market set apart for the sale of gold and silver wares, 
jewels, cloths interwoven with feathers, and other 
manufactured goods, where also slaves of both sexes 
were sold. The slave-market was upon as great a scale 
as the Portuo^-uese market for nesfro slaves at Guinea. 
To prevent the slaves from running away, they were 
fastened by halters around their necks, though some 
were allowed to walk at larore. Next to these divisions 
were the dealers in coarser wares, cotton, twisted 
thread, and cacao. In short, all kinds of commodities 
produced in New Spain [Yucatan and Mexico] were 



268 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

here to be found. The market reminded me of my 
native town of Medino del Campo at fair-time, where 
each kind of merchandise has a separate street as- 
signed for its sale. In one place were sold the stuffs 
manufactured of ncquen, as ropes and sandals. In 
another place, the sweet maguey root, ready-cooked, 
was offered for sale, and various other things made 
from this plant. In another part of the market were 
exposed the skins of tigers, lions, jackals, otters, red 
deer, wild cats, and of other animals of prey. Some 
of the skins were tanned. A particular space was 
assigned to the venders of fowls, turkeys, ducks, rab- 
bits, hares, deer, and dogs ; also a space to the fruit- 
sellers, pastry-cooks, and tripe-mongers. Not far from 
these were exposed all kinds of earthenware, from the 
largest jars to the smallest pitchers. Next were the 
dealers in honey and honey-cakes, and other sweet- 
meats. Next to these were the timber-merchants, fur- 
niture-dealers, with assortments of tables, benches, 
cradles, and all kinds of wooden implements, all sepa- 
rately arranged. * * * g^i- ^\^y si^ould I so mi- 
nutely detail every article exposed for sale in this great 
market? If I enumerated every thing singly, I should 
never get to the end of the list. And yet I have not 
mentioned the paper, which in this country is called 
amatl, the tubes filled with liquid-amber and tobacco, 
the various sweet-scented salves, and similar things, or 
the various seeds which were exposed for sale in the 
porticoes of this market, or the medicinal herbs. 

" In the market-place there were courts of justice, 
to which three judges and several constables were ap- 
pointed, who inspected the goods exposed for sale. I 
had almost forgotten to mention the salt, and those 
who made the flint-knives ; also the fish, and a kind of 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 269 

bread made of the mud or scum collected from the sur- 
face of the lake, and eaten in that form, and which has 
a taste similar to that of cheese/ Besides, there were 
instruments of brass, copper, and tin ; cups and painted 
pitchers of wood. * * * 

" On our way to the great temple, while passing- 
through the court-yards adjoining the market, we saw 
a number of merchants, who dealt in gold-dust as it 
came from the mines, which was exposed for sale in 
tubes made of large goose-bones, so thin and white 
that the gold shone through them. The value of these 
tubes of gold was estimated according to their length 
and thickness, and were taken in exchange for so 
many mantles, xiquipiles'^ of cacao-nuts,^ slaves, or for 
other merchandise. 

" On quitting the market, we entered the spacious 
court-yards surrounding the chief temple. These ap- 
peared to include more ground than the market-place 
at Salamanca, and were inclosed by a double wall con- 
structed of stone and lime. The yards were paved 
with large white flag-stones, extremely smooth, and 
where there were none, a brown plaster had been 
used. The court-yards were kept so very clean that 
there was not the smallest particle of dust or straw to 
be seen anywhere. 

" Before we ascended the steps of the great temple, 
Montezuma, who was sacrificing on the top to his 
idols, sent six priests and two of his principal officers 
to conduct Cortes up the steps. There were one hun- 
dred and fourteen steps to the summit, and as they 
feared that Cortes would experience the same fatigue 

' It is said that the slimy substance mentioned by Diaz was called tecuitlatl, 
the excrement of stone. It was variously fashioned, and dried in the sun. 

^ Xiquipiles, according to Torquemada, expressed the number of 8,000 of 
any thing. 

^ Cacao-beans were used by the Mexicans in lieu of small coin. 



2;o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

in mounting as Montezuma had, they desired to assist 
him by taking hold of his arms. Cortes, however, 
would not accept the proffered aid. When we had 
reached the summit of the temple, we walked across a 
platform where many large stones were lying, on 
which those who were doomed for sacrifice were 
stretched out. Near these stood a large idol, in the 
shape of a dragon, surrounded by various other abomi- 
nable figures, with a quantity of fresh blood in front of 
it. * * * 

" This infernal temple, from its great height, com- 
manded an extensive view of the surrounding country. 
From it we could see the three causeways leading to 
the city, — that one from Iztapalapan, by which we had 
entered the city four days before ; that one from Tla- 
cupa, along which we took our flight eight months 
after, when we were driven out of the city by the new 
monarch, Cuitlahuatzin ; the third, the one from Tepea- 
quilla. We also saw the aqueduct, which extended 
from Chapultepec, and supplied the city with fresh 
water. We could also distincdy see the bridges across 
the openings in the causeways, through which the 
waters of the lake ebbed and flowed. The lake was 
crowded with canoes conveying provisions, manufac- 
tured articles, and other merchandise to the city. 
We also observed that the only means of intercourse 
between the houses in this city, and between those of 
all the other towns built in the lake, was by draw- 
bridges or canoes. In all these cities the beautiful 
white-plastered temples rose above the smaller ones, 
like many of the towers and castles in our Spanish 
cities. The view from the top of the temple, it may be 
imagined, was a splendid sight. 

" After we had sufficiendy gazed upon this mag- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 271 

nificent picture, we again turned our eyes toward the 
great market, and beheld the vast number of buyers 
and sellers who thronged it. The bustle and noise 
caused by this multitude of human beings was so great 
that it could be heard at a distance of more than four 
miles. Some of our men, who had been at Constanti- 
nople and at Rome and had travelled through the 
whole of Italy, said that they never had seen a market- 
place of such large dimensions, or which was so well 
regulated, or so crowded with people as this one in 
Mexico. * * * 

" We were conducted to a small temple with one 
room, in which we saw two bases resembling altars, 
decked with coverings of extreme beauty. On each of 
them stood a gigantic, bulky-looking figure. The one 
on the right hand represented the god of war, Huitzil- 
opochtli. This idol had a very broad face with dis- 
torted and terrible eyes, and was covered with jewels, 
gold, and pearls, fastened with a paste made from a 
certain root. Large serpents, also, covered with gold 
and precious stones, wound round the body of this 
monster, which held in one hand a bow, and in the 
other a bunch of arrows. Another but smaller idol, 
its page, standing by its side carried the monster's 
short spear and golden shield, studded with precious 
stones. Around Huitzilopochtli's neck were figures 
representing human faces, and hearts made of gold 
and silver and decorated with blue stones. In front 
of him stood several perfuming pans containing copal, 
the incense of the country ; also the hearts of three 
Indians, who had been killed that day. The hearts 
v/ere consumino- before him as a burnt-offerine. The 
walls of the temple and the whole floor were almost 
black with human blood, and the stench was highly 
offensive. 



2/2 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" On the left hand stood another fieure of the same 
size as HuitzilopochtH. Its face resembled very much 
that of a bear. Its shining eyes were made of tetzcat, 
the reflecting-glass of the country. This idol, like its 
brother HuitzilopochtH, was covered with precious 
stones, and v/as called Tetzcatlipuca. This was the god of 
hell. * * '*' A circle of figures wound round its body, 
resembling diminutive devils with serpents' tails. The 
walls and floor around this idol were also besmeared 
with blood, and the stench was greater than that of a 
Spanish slaughter-house. Five human hearts had that 
day been offered to him. On the very top of this 
temple stood another ; the wood-work of which was 
exceedingly elaborate and richly carved. In this tem- 
ple there was another idol, half man and half lizard, 
completely covered with precious stones ; half of this 
figure was hidden from view. We were told that the 
concealed half was covered with the seeds of every 
plant on the earth, for this idol was the god of seeds 
and fruits. * * * in the temple was a drum of 
enormous dimensions, the sound of which was so deep 
and solemn that it was appropriately called the drum 
of hell. The drum-head was made from the skin of 
an enormous serpent. The sound of the drum could 
be heard eight miles. The platform of the temple was 
covered with a variety of hellish objects, — large and 
small trumpets, great slaughtering knives, the burnt 
hearts of Indians who had been sacrificed, — every 
thing being clotted with coagulated blood, terrible to 
view and filling the mind with horror. ''' * * 

"If I remember rightly, this temple occupied a 
space of ground on which we could have placed six of 
the largest buildings commonly found in our country. 
The building had the form of a pyramid, on the sum- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 273 

mit of which was the small temple with the idols. * * * 
" Cortes and the rest of us at last grew weary with 
the inspection of so many idols and the implements 
used for sacrifices, and we returned to our quarters ac- 
companied by a great number of the chief men and 
caciques, whom Montezuma had ordered to attend 
us." 

It is unnecessary here to follow farther the move- 
ments of the conquerors {conquistadores) of New 
Spain. The beautiful and famous metropolis of Mex- 
ico, twenty-two months after Cortes and his followers 
had entered it, was in ruins, filled with the innumerable 
dead bodies of its heroic defenders. The siege of the 
city lasted ninety-three days, ending the 13th of Au- 
gust, 1 52 1. When the terrible drama ended, Cortes 
permitted those of its inhabitants who had not been 
killed, starved, or stricken with disease, to leave the 
charnel city. " The causeways," says Diaz, " were 
crowded for three days and nights with men, women, 
and children, on their way to the main-land. These 
poor beings were much emaciated, and had a death- 
like appearance. * * '^ The houses were found 
filled with dead bodies. * * * The soil in the 
city looked as if it had been ploughed, for the famished 
inhabitants had dug every root out of the ground, and 
had even peeled the bark from the trees to appease 
their hunger. We did not find any fresh water in the 
city, for that in all the wells was salty. During the 
horrible famine the Mexicans had not eaten the flesh 
of their countrymen, although they greedily devoured 
that of the Tlascallans and Spaniards. Certainly no 
people in this world ever suffered so much from hun- 
ger, thirst, and the horrors of war, as the inhabitants 
of this great city." As the emperor's share of the 



274 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

booty, Cortes sent to Spain two vessels carrying 
eighty-eight thousand pesos of gold in bars, and the 
wardrobe of Montezuma. " The latter," Diaz observes, 
" was a valuable present, and well worthy of our great 
emperor's acceptance, for it embraced jewels of the great- 
est value, pearls of the size of hazel-nuts, and various 
precious stones, the number of which my memory will 
not permit me to designate. At the same time were 
sent the bones of the giants which we found in the 
temple of Cojohuacan, which were similar to those 
given to us by the Tlascallans that we had previously 
sent to Spain." ' 

* I listeria verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva Espafia. Diaz. cap. 
xxxix-clix. — Vide The memoirs of the conquistador. Lockhart. chap, xxxix- 
clix. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

i5r8-i524. 

That' part of the coast of the continent, now in- 
cluded in the territory of the states of Texas, Louisi- 
ana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the westerly portion of 
Florida, was first discovered and explored by Alonso 
Alvarez de Pineda. The fleet which this Spaniard 
commanded was fitted out by Francisco de Garay, the 
wealthy governor of the island of Jamaica, who had 
accompanied Columbus to the New World in 1493. 
Bernal Diaz, in his history of the conquest of New 
Spain, thus speaks of this expedition : *' In the year 
i5i8, when the report of our having discovered this 
country, under Cordoba and Grijalva, and of the twenty 
thousand pesos which came into the hands of Diego 
Velasquez, had spread through the whole of the West 
Indies," and when Garay "received information of a 
new expedition that was destined for New Spain, under 
Hernando Cortes, he [Francisco de Garay] was seized 
with a great desire likewise to discover some new 
countries, and certainly he had more wealth at his 
command than we to fit out a fleet for such a purpose. 
He had learned considerable about the riches of the 
new countries from our old chief pilot Alaminos, and 
how thickly populated the provinces were on the river 
Panuco ; and as several other sailors, who had accom- 
panied us on those expeditions, confirmed what Ala- 
minos had told him, he thought that it was to his ad- 

275 



276 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

vantage to request his majesty to grant him the per- 
mission to make further discoveries on the river 
Panuco, and to appoint him governor of all the lands 
he should discover. For this purpose he dispatched 
his major-domo, Juan de Torralva, to Spain, with letters 
and presents for those who at that time administered 
the affairs of the Indies, soliciting them to procure him 
the appointment mentioned. 

" His majesty was at the time in Flanders, and the 
president of the council of the Indies, Don Juan 
Rodriguez de Fonseca, bishop of Burgos and titular 
archbishop of Rosano, with the two licentiates Zapata 
and Vargas, and the secretary Lopez de Conchillos, 
managed the affairs of the Indies as they pleased. 
Garay therefore easily obtained the appointment of 
adelantado and governor of the provinces bordering 
on the river San Pedro and San Pablo, and of all 
the countries he should discover. By virtue of this 
appointment he fitted out three vessels, having on 
board two hundred and forty men, including a strong 
body of cavalry, cross-bowmen, and musketeers. The 
chief command of this fleet he gave to Alonso Alvarez 
de Pineda.' " 

It is further related that the explorers set sail in 
1 5 19, toward " the peninsula of Florida, in twenty-five 
degrees of north latitude, for Florida appeared to them 
to be a very attractive island, and they thought that it 
was better to settle on islands than on the main-land, 
because they could more easily conquer the natives 
and keep them in subjection. They landed, but the 
people of Florida killed so many of them that they did 
not dare to settle there. They then sailed along the 
coast and came to the river of Panuco, five hundred 

' Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva Espana. Diaz. cap. Ix, 
clxii. — F/t/^ The memoirs of the conquistador. Lockhart. chap. Ix, clxii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 277 

leagues from the peninsula of Florida, measured on a 
course alonof the coast. The natives attacked them 
at every place. Many of them were killed at Chila 
[near the mouth of the river Panuco], where the natives 
flayed and eat those who fell into their hands, and hung 
up the skins in their temples to commemorate their 
valor." ^ 

Diaz further observes : ** While we were lying at 
Villa Segura, Cortes was informed by letters that one 
of the vessels which Garay had fitted out for the pur- 
pose of forming settlements on the river Panuco had 
arived at Vera Cruz. This vessel was commanded 
by a certain Comargo, and had on board more than 
sixty soldiers, who were all in bad health, with their 
bodies greatly swelled. This Comargo gave the par- 
ticulars of the unfortunate termination of Garay 's expe- 
dition to the river Panuco. 

" The Indians had massacred the commander-in- 
chief, Alonso Alvarez de Pineda, and all his soldiers 
and horses, and then had set fire to his vessels. Co- 
margo alone had been fortunate enough to escape 
with his men on board of one of the vessels, and 
had steered for Vera Cruz, where the explorers ar- 
rived half famished, for they had not been able to 
procure any provisions from the enemy. This Co- 
margo, it was said, had taken the vows of the order 
of the Dominicans. 

** Comargo and his men, by moderate advances, 
at last arrived at Villa Segura, for they were so 
weakened that they could scarcely move along. When 
Cortes saw in what a terrible condition they were, 
he commended them to our care, and showed Co- 
margo and all his men every possible kindness. If I 

' Tratado, que compQs e nobre & notauel capitao Antonio Galuao. 



2;8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

remember rightly, Comargo died soon after, and also 
several of his men." ' 

The fields of the explorations of Alonso Alvarez 
de Pineda, Juan de Grijalva, PVancisco Hernandez de 
Cordoba, and Juan Ponce de Leon are represented on 
a traced map of the coast of the continent and of the 
new lands {traza de las castas de tierra-fimie y de las 
tief'ras 7iucvas), made in i52i, to define the limits of 
the jurisdictions of Juan Ponce Leon, Francisco de 
Garay, and Diego Velasquez. ' 

On the peninsula of Florida, delineated on the map, 
is inscribed in Spanish : " Florida called Bimini, which 
Juan Ponce discovered." West of it is a broken line 
and this inscription : "As far as this Juan Ponce dis- 
covered." At some distance farther west is another 
line of limitation and this explanation : " From here 
Francisco Garay began to discover." West of this is 
the early designation of the Mississippi River, " Rio del 
Espiritu Santo " (River of the Holy Spirit). South- 
war4 beyond the mouth of the Panuco River is a third 
broken line and the inscription : " As far as this 
place Francisco de Garay discovered toward the west, 
and Diego Velazquez toward the east as far as Cabo 
de las Higueras, wliich the Pinzons discovered, and the 
population has given it to them." 

According to these incmoranda and the statements 
of Herrera, the Spanish historian, Juan Ponce de Leon 

' In June, 1523, Francisco de Garay sailed wilh a fleet and a large number 
of troops from Jamaica to take possession of the province of Panuco, of which 
he had been appointed governor. He failed to accomplish his purpose, and 
died in the city of Mexico, at the end of December, 1523. Historia verdadera 
de la conquista de la Nueva Espaiia. cap. cxxxiii, clxii. Vide The memoirs 
of the conquistador. Lockhart. chap, cxxxiii, clxii. 

* Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. torn. iii. pp. 
64-69; 147-153- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 279 

explored the eastern coast of Florida from La Cruz, 
south of the thirty-first parallel, to a point on the south- 
western coast, perhaps as far as Appalachee Bay. 
Alonso Alvarez de Pineda's explorations, it would seem, 
began at Appalachicola Bay and ended at the Panuco 
River. ^ 

The more northerly part of the eastern coast of 
Florida and coast of the present state of Georgia were 
inspected by the officers and crews of two vessels, 
equipped in i520 in the port of La Plata, San Do- 
mingo, by seven citizens of that island. The ships 
were fitted out to sail among the Bahama Islands to 
kidnap Indians to work in the mines and on the plan- 
tations. Among the projectors of the expedition was 
Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon. ^ When the kidnapers 
arrived among the Bahama Islands they found them 
depopulated. " They determined," it is said, " to go 
farther toward the north to search for a new country 

' The situation of certain places along the coast of the present states of 
Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas, is thus described by 
Gomara : " From Santa Elena to Rio Seco, in 31°, are other forty leagues, 
and thence to La Cruz are twenty, and thence to Canaveral, forty ; and from 
Punta Canaveral, in 28°, are other forty to Punta de la Florida (the peninsula 
of Florida). * * * This is in 25°, which is twenty leagues in length, and 
from it are a hundred or more leagues to Ancon bajo, which is fifty leagues 
from Rio Seco, from east to west, across Florida. From Ancon bajo they esti- 
mate it to be a hundred leagues to Rio de Nieves, and thence to that of Flores 
more than twenty, from which river it is seventy leagues to the Bay of the Holy 
Spirit (Baya del Espiritu Sancto), called by another name. La Culata (the breech 
of a gun), which river flows out into the ocean thirty leagues, and is in 29°, and 
thence it is more than seventy to Rio de Pescadores. From Rio de Pescadores, 
in 28" 30', are a hundred leagues to Rio de las Palmas, near which cfosses the 
tropic of Cancer ; thence to Rio Panuco are more than thirty leagues ; and 
thence to Villa Rica or Vera Cruz, seventy leagues." — Primera y segunda parte 
de la historia general de las Indias. Gomara. cap. xii. 

' Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, a native of Toledo, Spain, was one of the 
licentiates appointed by King Ferdinand to act as auditors of the royal court of 
appeal (audiencia), afterward sitting in San Domingo. In Jilarch, 1520, Ayllon 
went willi Pamfilo de Naiwaez to New Spain, who was sent there by Diego 
Velasquez to administer the affairs of that country. When Ayllon landed in 
Mexico he became so inimical to the purposes of Velasquez that Narvaez put 
him under arrest and sent him back to Cuba, where he arrived in August, 1520. 



28o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

rather than return without any slaves. They reached 
a country called Chicora and Gualdape, in thirty-two 
degrees of north latitude"; where there was a cape, 
afterward called Cabo de Santa Elena (Cape of Saint 
Helen), and the Rio Jordan (River Jordan).' 

" When our men steered toward the shore," Peter 
Martyr relates, " the inhabitants, astonished at the 
sight of the ships, imagined that some monster was 
approaching. In order to satisfy their curiosity they 
flocked in great numbers to the shore. When our 
people were about to land with their boats the Indians 
ran rapidly away. As they fled our men pursued. 
Some of the youngest and the fastest runners overtook 
two of the natives, a man and a woman. They brought 
these to the ships, dressed them, and gave them their 
liberty. Impressed by this evidence of good-will the 
Indians returned in crowds to the beach. The king of 
the country, learning how our men had dealt with the 
man and the woman, and seeing the new and costly 
garments upon them (for the Indians only clothe them- 
selves with the skins of lions or of other animals), sent 
fifty of his people to ours bearing the productions of 
the country. When visited by our people he was 
friendly and hospitable. When they expressed a 
desire to see the surrounding country he gave them 
guides and guards. Wherever they went the inhab- 
itants came reverently to them with presents as unto 
gods to be adored, especially when they saw them 
having beards, and clothed with linen and silken gar- 
ments. But what! The Spaniards violated the laws 
of hospitality. For by craft and various cunning 

■• " So designated," says Herrera. " because Jordan was the name of one of 
the captains or masters of the ships." 

Primera y segunda parte de la historia general de las Indias. Gomara. 
cap. vii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 281 

devices, after they had seen all that they wished, they 
so managed that on an appointed day the Indians 
visited the ships to inspect them. When the vessels 
were crowded with these innocent people, the anchors 
were weighed and the sails hoisted, and the Indians 
were carried away mourning into servitude. Instead 
of friends they made the people of those regions 
enemies, and having found them contented they left 
them miserable, having taken children from parents, 
and husbands from wives. Of the two ships one only 
returned, the other was never seen again. It was con- 
jectured that all on board were drowned, the guilty 
and the guiltless, for it was an old ship. * * * 

" While they were there they explored the two 
principal regions, Chicora and Duharhe. * * * 
They say that the people of Chicora are half black or 
tawny as our farmers are, burned and tanned by the 
sun. The men allow their hair to grow long, which 
often extends down to their girdles. The hair of the 
women is much longer. Both sexes bind up their 
hair. The men have no beards. Whether or not they 
are so naturally or so by art is unknown ; however, 
they take great pride in having smooth faces. * * * 
Leaving Chicora they went to the other side of the 
bay, and took possession of the region called Du- 
harhe." 

Peter Martyr further observes that Ayllon had been 
a persistent solicitor at the court of Spain, and that he 
wanted to obtain letters-patent to go again to these 
countries " to plant a colony there.' * * * Hq 

' Ayllon, in 1523, was made governor {adelantadd) of the provinces and 
islands of Suache, Chicora, Xapira, Tatancal, Anicatiye, Cocayo, Guacaya, 
Xoxi, Sona, Pasqui, Arambe, Xamunambe, Huag, Tanzaca, Yenyohol, Paor, 
Yamiscaron, Carixagusignanin and Anoxa, that were said to lie between the 
thirty-fifth and thirty-seventh parallels of north latitude. In 1524 it is said 
that he sent two ships to some of these places. In July, 1526, he sailed him- 



282 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

brouofht one of the natives of Chicora with him. * * * 
While he remained [in Spain] prosecuting- his business, 
I sometimes had Ayllon, the master, and the Chicoran, 
his servant, as my guests. The Chicoran is not a dull 
person nor superficially intelligent. He has learned 
the Spanish language passably well. The things 
which Ayllon showed me, written by his men and re- 
ported by the Chicoran, that are strange and remark- 
able, I will relate. * * * Ayllon says the natives 
there [in Duharhe] are white, which also Franciscus, 
the tawny Chicoran, asserts, and that they have long 
yellow hair hanging down to their ankles. 

*' These people have a king of giantdike proportions, 
called Datha, and they say that the queen, his wife, is 
not much smaller. * * * This kino; beine asked 
why he and his wife were so remarkably tall and the 
other people not, replied that their height was not 
hereditary, but that it had been caused by violent 
treatment. While they were infants in the charge of 
nurses their parents sent for those practicing the art, 
who anointed their limbs for a number of days with 
certain decoctions of herbs to soften their tender 
bones, which in time became as pliable as lukewarm 
wax. They then stretched their limbs, often leaving 
them almost dead. Thereupon the nurses, who'^had 
been fed with certain strength-producing meats, suckled 

self from Espanola, with six vessels, having on board five hundred men and 
ninety horses. Diego Miruelo, the pilot of this fleet, it is said, failed to find 
the coast of Chicora, which he had visited in 1520. The natives, where the 
Spaniards landed, manifested toward them the greatest friendliness, and so de- 
ceived Ayllon with their unbounded hospitality that he sent two hundred of his 
men into the interior on an exploring expedition. While they were sleeping 
the savages fell upon them and murdered them to a man. They then attacked 
those near the ships, who, being outnumbered, fled before their assailants. 
One hundred and fifty escaped, and in a suffering condition returned to San 
Domingo. It is further related that Ayllon died on the eighteenth of October, 
1526. — Coleccion de los viages y descubrimientos. Navarrete. tom. lii. pp. 

69-74 ; 153-160. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 283 

them, the infants being covered with warm cloths. 
When they had again regained their vigor the practi- 
tioners again twisted and pulled their bones as they 
had previously done. This treatment was repeated 
from time to time until their limbs were lengthened so 
much that when they reached maturity they had the 
desired tallness. * * * 

" There is another region near Duharhe called Xa- 
pida. In it they say pearls and a precious stone re- 
sembling a pearl are to be found, which the natives 
highly prize. In all the country explored by them 
there were herds of deer kept like cattle with us. The 
deer fawn at home, and there they also rear their 
young. These deer, when free, wander and pasture in 
the woods during the day and at night return to their 
young. They are confined in pens and allow them- 
selve to be milked. * * * The people fatten many 
kinds of fowl, as chickens, ducks, geese, and the like. 
Their bread is maize, the same as that of the people of 
the islands. * * * The grain of the maize is like our 
panic of Insubria, [in Italy,] but in size like pease. 
They sow another kind of corn called Xathi. They 
believe it is millet. * * * The natives have several 
varieties of potatoes, but they are small. * * * The 
Spaniards speak of many regions which they think are 
under the government of one and the same king, — 
Hitha, Xamunabe, Tihe. 

" In this country they say there is a caste of priests 
differing from the people. These priests are held in 
great reverence by the inhabitants of the surrounding 
country. The natives of this regipn cut their hair, 
leaving only two curled locks hanging down in front of 
their ears, Vv^hich locks they tie under their chins. The 
Spaniards explored many regions of this great country, 



284 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

which tracts they called Arambe, Guacaia, Quohathe, 
Tanzacca, Pahor. The inhabitants are all somewhat 
tawny and swart. None of them have any knowledge 
of letters, but they possess many traditions which they 
preserve and relate in rhymes and songs. They exer- 
cise themselves in dancing and skipping, and find much 
amusement in playing ball, for they are very nimble 
and skillful. The women sew and spin, and although 
for the most part they are dressed in the skins of wild 
animals, they have cotton and make thread from the 
fibres of certain tough plants, as our hemp or flax. 
There is another resfion called Inzio-nanin." ' 

According to Gomara's geographical description 
of the coast of North America, the explorations of the 
Spaniards who discovered Tierra de Ayllon (the Land 
of Ayllon) extended from the Cape of St. Helen, in 32°, 
northwardly forty leagues to the River Jordan. If Cape 
St. Helen were a point of land near the mouth of the 
Combahee River, the river Jordan was likely the Santee 
River, in South Carolina. ^ 

Among the most renowned of the various maritime 
achievements which gave great fame to Spanish enter- 
prise in seeking for a sea-path to Cathay by sailing 
toward the west, was that of the circumnavigation 
of the globe in the years 1 5 19-1522. The remarkable 
voyage was begun by Fernam de Magalhaens, a 
Portuguese navigator. The first account of the expe- 
dition was written by Antonio Pigafetta, an Italian 
chevalier, who accompanied Magalhaens. Pigafetta's 
connection with the exploration is explained by him in 
the opening chapter of his history of the voyage : •' I 

' De Orbe Novo decades, dec. ii. cap. vii. 

* " Thence to Puerto del Principe are more than a hundred leagues, and from 
it to the Rio Jordan, seventy, and thence to Cabo de Santa Elena, which is in 
32°, there are forty leagues." — Primera y segunda parte de la historia general 
de las Indias. Gomara. cap. xii. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 285 

learned that a squadron of five vessels were under 
equipment at Seville, destined for the discovery of the 
Molucca Islands from which we get our spices, and 
that Fernam de Magalhaens/ a Portuguese gentleman, 
and a commander of the order of St. lao^o de la 
Spata, who had already more than once traversed the 
ocean with great reputation, was made captain-general 
of the expedition.^ Therefore I immediately repaired 
to Barcelona to request permission of his majesty to be 
one of the number of persons to go on this voyage. 
My request was granted." 

The interested historian then relates : ** The 
captain-general, Fernam de Magalhaens, had deter- 
mined to undertake a long voyage across the ocean 
where the winds are violent and storms quite frequent. 
He also resolved to take a course not yet explored by 
any navigator, but this bold purpose he was cautious 
in disclosing lest some one should try to dissuade him 
from it by magnifying the risk he would run and thus 
dishearten his men. Besides the dangers common to a 
voyage like this one was the disadvantageous cir- 
cumstance that the four other vessels under his 
command were in charge of captains inimical to him 
solely because he was a Portuguese and they were 
Spaniards." 

The fleet sailed from the port of Seville, on Mon- 
day morning, the tenth of August, i5i9, The five 
ships proceeded southwardly along the coast of Africa, 
passed between Cape Verd and the islands of the 

'Pigafetta writes the name " Magaglianes," the Portuguese "Magal- 
haens," the Spaniards " Magallanes," and the French " Magellan." The Eng- 
lish follow the French spelling. 

' Fernam de Magalhaens was born at Oporto, about the year 1470. After 
entering the Portuguese navy, he sailed to the East Indies and served 
under Affonso d' Albuquerque. He returned to Spain about the year 
1517. 



286 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Cape Verd group, and after reaching Sierra Leone, 
stood for the coast of Brazil. 

" After we crossed the equator," says Pigafetta, 
" we lost sight of the north star. We then steered 
south-southwest, making for Terra del Verzino (Land 
of Red wood), in latitude twenty-three degreeii thirty 
minutes south latitude.' This country is a continua- 
tion of that in which Cape St. Augustine is situated, 
in eight degrees thirty minutes south latitude." 

The squadron entered the port now known as that 
of Rio Janeiro on St. Lucy's day, the thirteenth of 
December. 

" The land of Brazil, which produces every thing in 
abundance, is as large as Spain, France, and Italy 
united. It is one of the countries acquired by the 
king of Portugal. The people of Brazil are not 
Christians, nor are they idolaters, for they worship 
nothing. * * * They go entirely naked, the 
women as well as the men. Their houses are longf 
cabins, which they call doi. They lie on cotton-nets 
called hammocks fastened at the ends to two strong 
posts. Their fire-places are on the ground. Their 
dots frequently contain a hundred men, with their 
wives and children, consequently there is always con- 
siderable noise in these houses. "" * * 

** The people of Brazil, both men and women, paint 
their bodies and particularly their faces in a singular 
manner with different figures. They have short, 
woolly hair on their heads, but none on other parts of 
their bodies, for they pluck it out. They have a dress 
made of the interwoven feathers of the parrot, and so 
arranged that the large quills of the wings and tail 
form a girdle about their loins, giving the wearer a 

' Before Brazil was discovered, red wood was brought to Europe from Asia 
and Africa. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 287 

unique and grotesque appearance. Almost all the 
men have their lower lips pierced with three holes, 
through which they thrust a slender cylindrical stone 
about two inches long. The women and children do 
not wear this cumbersome ornament. '^' * * Their 
color is more of an olive than a black." 

After anchoring thirteen days in the port of Rio 
Janeiro, the fleet coasted southward to the mouth of 
the Rio de la Plata, where, as Pigafetta relates : "Juan 
de Solis, while on a similar voyage of discovery, was 
with sixty of his crew devoured by cannibals, in whom 
they placed too much confidence." 

At the beginning of winter, in the month of May, 
1 520, the fleet reached the port of St. Julian, " in forty- 
nine degrees thirty minutes," where they anchored for 
five months.^ Here the explorers were visited by a 
number of criants. Pisj'afetta, describingf one of the 
visitors, remarks : " This man was so prodigiously 
large that our heads scarcely reached to his waist. 
He had an attractive appearance. His face was broad 
and painted red, with the exception of a circle of 
yellow round his eyes and two spots, figured like 
hearts, on his cheeks. His hair, which was thin, was 
whitened with some kind of a powder. His coat, or 
rather his mantle, was made of furs, well sewed to- 
gether, taken from an indigenous animal, which after- 
ward we had an opportunity to see. This animal [the 
guanaco] has the head and ears of a mule, the body of 
a camel, the legs of a stag, and the tail of a horse, and, 

' In the edition of Ptolemy's geography, printed at Rome in 1508, it is said : 
"The Land of the Holy Cross diminishes all the way to south latitude 37^ ; 
although, according to navigators who have explored it, it is said all the way 
to south latitude 50° ; of which remaining part no description is found. — 
Terra SajicicB Crucis decrescit usque ad latitudinem 211° ci.ust.\ quamqitam ad 
Archiploi usque ad 50° austj;, navigarint, ut ferunt ; qiiam reliquain por- 
iionem dcscriptam noii reperi." cap. xiv. 



288 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

like the latter, neighs. This man also wore shoes 
made of the skin of the same animal. In his left hand 
he carried a short and heavy bow ; the string, some- 
what thicker than a lute's, was made of an intestine of 
the animal already mentioned. In his other hand he 
held arrows made of short reeds, with feathers at one 
end, similar to our arrows, and at the other, instead of 
iron, a white and black flint. * * * 

"The women are not as tall as the men, but they 
are much stouter. ""' * * They paint and dress in 
the same manner as their husbands, and use the thin 
skin of an animal to cover their nakedness. They 
were, in our judgment, far from handsome, neverthe- 
less their husbands seemed jealous. * * * 

" Savage as these Indians are, they are not without 
their medicaments. When they have a pain in the 
stomach, in place of an active medicine they thrust an 
arrow far down the throat to cause them to vomit. 
:H * * jf |-j-^gy have the headache, they make a 
gash in their forehead, and do the same with other 
parts of their body where they suffer pain, to draw 
from the affected part a considerable quantity of 
blood. * * * 

" Their hair is cut circularly, like that of monks, but 
it is longer, and they confine it round the head with a 
cotton-string, in which bandage they place their arrows 
when they go hunting. * * «■ jj appears that 
their religion is limited to adoring the devil. They 
pretend that when one of them is on the point of 
death, ten or twelve demons appear dancing and sing- 
ing around the dying person. * *^ * These peo- 
ple, as I have already said, clothe themselves with the 
skin of an animal, and also cover their huts with the 
same kind of skin. They transport their huts, for they 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 289 

have no fixed place of abode, and wander about 
from place to place like gypsies. They hve on 
raw meat and a sweet root called capac. '' * '•= 
Our captain gave these people the name of Patago- 
nians. * * * 

" Scarcely had we anchored in this roadstead before 
the four captains of the other vessels plotted to murder 
the captain-general. These traitors were Juan of 
Carthagena, inspector of the fleet, Luis de Mendoza, 
the treasurer, Antonio Cocca, the. paymaster, and 
Caspar de Casada. The plot was discovered. The 
first named was flayed alive, and the second stabbed 
to the heart. Caspar de Casada was forgiven, but in 
a few days he was again treacherous. Then the captain- 
general (who did not dare to take Casada's life, as he 
was made a captain by the emperor,) drove him from 
the fleet and left him in the country of the Patagonians, 
with a priest, his accomplice. * * * 

" We planted a cross on the summit of a neighbor- 
ing mountain, which we named Monte Cristo, and took 
possession of the country in the name of the king of 
Spain. * * * 

" Continuing our course toward the south, on the 
twenty-first of October, in fifty-two degrees, we dis- 
covered a strait, which we called the Strait of the 
Eleven Thousand Virgins (xi. mila Vergini), in honor 
of the day. This strait, as it will hereafter appear, is 
four hundred and forty miles, or one hundred and ten 
leagues long, and about a half league wide, more or 
less.^ It extends to another sea, which we named the 
Pacific Ocean (Mar pacifico). The strait lies between 
lofty mountains covered with snow, and the channel 

^ The eastern entrance to the strait lies between the Cape of the Virgins, on 
the north, and the Cape of the Holy Spirit, on the south, and is about twenty 
miles wide. The strait is three hundred and fifteen miles long. 



290 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

was so deep that we were compelled to anchor close 
to the shore.' * '"^ * 

" The whole of the crew were so fully persuaded 
that this strait had no western outlet, that we should 
have left it unexplored had it not been for the profound 
scientific knowledge of the captain-general. Skillful 
as he was intrepid, he knew that he had to sail through 
a very secluded strait which he had seen marked on a 
chart, in the archives of the king of Portugal, drawn 
by that most excellent man, Martin of Boemia.^ 

" As soon as we entered the strait, imagined to be 
only a bay, the captain sent the two ships, the San 
Antonio and La Concepcion, in advance to explore it 
to its termination or to where it extended, while we, 
in the ships La Trinidad and La Victoria, remained at 
its mouth.3 

"Two days passed before the vessels returned that 
had been sent to examine the bottom of the bay. We 
beo-an to conjecture that they had been engulfed dur- 
ing the tempest which had occurred, for seeing smoke 
on shore we imagined that those who had the good 
fortune to escape had kindled fires to inform us of their 
existence and distress. But while in this painful sus- 
pense we saw the ships coming toward us under full 
sail and with their flags flying. * * '" When we 
learned from those on board that they had seen the 

*On the Maiollo map of 1527, the following inscription is placed near the 
delineated strait: " Streito doute pasas Magaianes Portogese per andare in le 
isole de Maluchi de le spesarie de Re de Spania," the strait passed by Ma;^aianes, 
a Portuguese, to go to the Molucca Islands for spices for the king of Spain. 

^ " II capitano-generalc, die sapeva de dover fare la sua navegazione per into 
streto inolto ascoso, como vile ne la thcsararia del re de Portugal in una carta 
fata per qtiellg exccUentissijuo htionio Martina di Boemia." 

The chart was evidently one drafted to exhibit tlie field of the explorations 
of Cabral and other Portuguese navigators along the eastern coast of Brazil. 

^ The fifth vessel, the Santiago, while exploring the coast, when the other 
ships were at anchor in the harbor of St. Julian, was wrecked. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 291 

prolongation of the bay, or, more correctly, of the 
strait, we sailed to them to continue our voyage on 
this course, if possible. 

" When we had entered into the third bay, which I 
have already mentioned, we saw two openings, or 
channels, the one running to the southeast, the other 
to the southwest. * * * Xhe captain-general sent 
the two vessels, the San Antonio and La Concepcion, 
to the southeast to examine whether or not this chan- 
nel terminated in an open sea. The first set sail im- 
mediately under press of canvas, not choosing to wait 
for the second, which the pilot wished to leave behind, 
for he had intended to avail himself of the darkness of 
the night to retrace his course and return to Spain by 
the same way he had come. 

"This pilot was Estevan Gomez, who hated Magal- 
haens, for the sole reason that when Magalhaens came 
to Spain to lay his project before the emperor of go- 
ing to the Moluccas by a western route, Gomez him- 
self had already requested, and was on the point of 
obtaining, some caravels for an expedition of which he 
would have had the command. This expedition had 
for its object new discoveries, but the arrival of Magal- 
haens prevented his request from being granted, and 
he only obtained the subaltern position of pilot. His 
disaffection was further increased by the thought of his 
serving under a Portugese. In the course of the night 
he conspired with the other Spaniards on board the 
ship. They put in irons and even wounded the cap- 
tain, Alvaro de Meschita, the cousin-german of the 
captain-general, and carried him to Spain." ' 

' Gomez, after deserting the squadron with the San Antonio, returned to 
the port of St. Julian, and there took on board Caspar de Casada and the priest 
whom Magalhaens had put on shore. On Gomez's return to Spain, the sixth of 
May, 1521, he told " the emperor that Magalhaens was crazy and had lied to 



292 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

When the strait was explored to its termination, 
the cape where the strait ended was called, says Piga- 
fetta, " II Cabo Deseado " (The Desired Cape). 

On Wednesday, the twenty-eighth of November, 
i520, the three ships left the strait and entered the 
unexplored expanse of the Pacific. "In the course of 
three months and twenty days," Pigafetta observes, 
"we traversed nearly four thousand leagues on the 
ocean called by us the Pacific, on account of our not 
having experienced during this period any tempestu- 
ous weather. In this long space of time we did not 
descry any land, except two desert islands. On these 
we saw nothing but birds and trees, therefore we 
named them, Isole Sfortunato' (The Unfortunate 
Islands). * * * Xhe two islands are two hundred 
leagues apart. The first lies in fifteen degrees south 
latitude, the second in nine deo^rees. According to the 
measure which we made of the voyage with the chain 
at the poop, we ran daily about sixty to seventy 
leagues.^ If God and the Holy Mother had not 
granted us a fortunate voyage we should all have 
perished from hunger on so vast a sea. I do not think 
that any one will hereafter venture on a similar voy- 
ao^e.^ 

" If we had continued on a western course on" the 
same parallel after leaving the strait we should have 
circumnavigated the globe without seeing any land 
except that extending from the Cape of the Eleven 

his majesty, for he did not know where Banda was nor the Moluccas." 
—Letter of Transylvanus and Castanheda. 

' Spanish, Las Islas Desdichados. 

* " Seconda la niisw-a che facevamo del viaggio colla catena a poppa, noi 
percorrcvamo da 60 in 70 leghe algiorno." 

' Sir Francis Drake followed Magalhaens a half century later. The 
former departed from England on the thirteenth of December, 1577, and re- 
turned there on the third of November, 1580. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 293 

Thousand Virgins, at the eastern head of the strait, in 
the Ocean Sea (Mar oceano), to Cabo Deseado, at 
the western end, in the Pacific Sea (Mar pacifico). 
The two capes are in fifty-two degrees south latitude. 

" The antarctic pole has not as many stars as the 
arctic. At the former a large number of small stars 
cluster together which form two nebulcs. They are 
separated from each other and are somewhat dim. In 
these nebul(E are two large and brilliant stars which 
move very little. These indicate the antarctic pole. 
Although the needle declined somewhat from the arctic 
pole it still oscillated toward it, but not with the same 
force as when in the northern hemisphere. When the 
captain-general out at sea directed the course in which 
the pilots should steer, he asked them in what direction 
they steered. All of them replied that they bore in 
the direction in which he had ordered them. He then 
informed them that their course was wronof and di- 
rected them to correct the needle, because, as they 
were in the southern hemisphere, it had not the same 
power to designate the true north as in the northern 
hemisphere. When we got out in the open sea, we 
saw, in the west, a cross of five very bright stars. 

" We steered northwest by west till we reached the 
equator in one hundred and twenty-two degrees of 
longitude, w^est of the line of demarkation. * * * 
After we crossed the equator we steered west by north. 
We then ran two hundred leagues toward the west, 
when, changing our course again, we ran west by 
south until we reached thirteen decrees of north lati- 
tude. We proposed by this course to reach Cape 
Catticara which geographers have placed in this lati- 
tude, but they are mistaken, for this cape lies twelve 
degrees more toward the north." ' 

' Cape Cattigara was, according to Ptolemy, in one hundred and eighty 



294 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

From the islands, which Magalhaens called " Isole de 
Ladroni," ' the three ships stood toward the Philippine 
Islands, where, on one called Matan, the captain-gen- 
eral was killed in an engagement with the natives, on 
the twenty-seventh of April, i52i. It was at the 
island of Zubu, near the former, " in ten degrees north 
latitude," that Magalhaens, before his death, received 
the first intelligence respecting the Molucca Islands. 
On Wednesday, the sixth of November, i52i, the 
ships came in sight of the long-sought Spice Islands, 
and on Friday, the eighth of November, i52i, the 
Victoria and the Trinidad arrived at the island of Ta- 
dore. "We now," Pigafetta remarks, "returned 
thanks to God and manifested our joy by firing a 
round from all of our large guns. It will not excite as- 
tonishment that we should be elated, when it is con- 
sidered that we had been at sea twenty-seven months, 
wanting two days, and had visited numerous islands in 
search of those we had reached. 

"The Portuguese had reported that the Molucca 
Islands lay in the middle of an impassable sea, full of 
shallows, and were surrounded by a cloudy, foggy at- 
mosphere. We, however, found the contrary, and 
never had less than a hundred fathoms water all the 
way to the Molucca Islands." The latter were five"" m 
number : Tarenate, Tadore, Mutir, Machian and 
Bachian.^ When afterward cloves were found on the 
adjacent islands, the name Moluccas, was applied to all 
the islands lying between the Philippines and Java. 

degrees of longitude from the Canaries and south of the equator. It is nov/ 
known as Cape Comorin, being the southern extremity of Hindostan, in north 
latitude 8° 5', and in east longitude 77° 30'. 

* Spanish, de los Ladrones. The Ladrone Islands, aljout twenty in num- 
ber, lie between 13° and 21° north latitude, and 144° and 146° east longitude. 

'The Moluccas or Spioe Islands, more than two hundred in number, lie 
between 3° north and 9" south latitude, and 122° and 133° east longitude. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 



295 



After a short sojourn at the Spice Islands, the return 
voyage was made by the ship La Victoria alone, com- 
manded by Juan Sebastian del Cano,' who set sail from 
Tadore on the twenty-first of December, i52i, the 
ship La Concepcion having been burned at the island 
Bohol, and La Trinidad having been left at the Moluc- 
cas in a leakinof condition. Followinof the route alono- 
the coast of Africa, the ship La Victoria arrived at 
Seville, on Monday, the eighth of September, i52 2, she 
having sailed in the entire voyage, according to Piga- 
fetta's computation, fourteen thousand six hundred 
leagues. Thus passed into history the wonderful 
achievement of the first circumnavioration of the earth 
in three years and twenty-nine days.^ 

The signal success of the maritime enterprise of the 
Spaniards engendered a spirit of jealousy among the 
Portuguese. The feeling of being overshadowed by 
their persistent rival in reaching the Indies by the way 
of the West led them to accuse the Spaniards of en- 
croaching on their commercial route to the Spice 
Islands, and of breaking the treaty of Tordesillas. 
The Spaniards in defence claimed that the Molluccas 
or the Spice Islands, found by Magellan's companions, 
were not within the limits of the territory of the Portu- 
guese as defined by the papal bull. 

To settle these national differences the notable con- 

* Juan Sebastian del Cano was honored for the notable part he took in this 
famous voyage by being permitted to display, as his coat of arms, the figure of 
a globe, on which was inscribed ; " Pritmis circumdedisii 7?ie." 

"^ Primo viaggio intorno al globo terracqueo ossia ragguaglio della naviga- 
zione alle indie orientali per la via d' occidente fatta dal cavaliere Antonio 
Pigafetta patrizio Vicentino sulla squadra del Capit. Magaglianes negli anni 
1519-1522 ora publicato per la prima volta, tratto da un codice MS. della 
Biblioteca Ambrosiana di Milano e corredota di note da Carlo Amoretti. In 
Milano, 1800. — Vide Tlie first voyage round the world by Magellan, translated 
from the accounts of Pigafetta and other contemporary writers. By Lord 
Stanley of Alderley. London, 1874. Hakluyt Soc. pub. Vide Pinkcrlon's 
voyages and travels, vol. i. pp. 288—381. 



296 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

gress of Badajos was convened in the spring of 1524. 
The king of each country sent to it special commis- 
sioners, among which number were Fernando Colum- 
bus, Sebastian Cabot, Diego Ribero, and Estevan 
Gomez. For a number of days the two parties angrily 
disputed concerning the indefinite position of the line 
of demarkation as established by the treaty of Torde- 
sillas in 1494. It was a question not easily decided 
where among the Cape Verd Islands the point was, 
through which, at the distance of three hundred and 
seventy leagues from it, the line of limitation passed to 
the poles, for the group of the Cape Verd Islands occu- 
pies a space in extent from east to west of about one 
hundred and fifty miles. 

Wherever, east or west, they decided this point 
should be established each party was aware that so 
much space would be gained or lost on the opposite 
side of the earth by the one or the other of the two 
countries. The congress, after many exciting disputa- 
tions, finally ended its session on the last day of May, 
without reaching any decision respecting the position 
of the papal line of limitation. The admission that 
Spain had full title to the Spice or Molucca Islands and 
that Portugal had acquired the right of possession of a 
part of Brazil, were the chief concessions made by fhis 
contentious body of learned men.' 

* Primera y segund^ parte de la historia general de las Indias. Gomara. 
cap. X. 



CHAPTER IX. 

1 504-1 524. 

The competitive zeal which Portugal, Spain, and 
England had displayed, in searching for a short water- 
way to the eastern coast of Asia, in time quickened 
the ambition of France to emulate these maritime 
powers in discovering a desirable route across the 
Atlantic to the vast domains of the Grand Khan of 
Cathay. The Gulf of St. Lawrence, as early as the 
year i5o4, was frequented by the fishing vessels of 
France. The exploration of the coast of the New 
Land, north of the present Atlantic territory of the 
United States of America, is described by a famous 
French sea-captain of Dieppe, in 1539. 

" The said land, that part running east and west 
[Cape Breton Island and Nova Scotia ?], was dis- 
covered about thirty-five years ago by the Bretons 
[Britons ?] and Normans ; hence this land has been 
called the Cape of the Bretons [Britons ?]. 

" The other part [Newfoundland ?] running north 
and south from Cape Ras to Cape Buona- Vista, in- 
cluding nearly seventy leagues, was discovered by the 
Portuguese, and the remainder, as far as the Gulf of 
Castiles [north of the Strait of Belle Isle], and still 
farther, was discovered by the said Bretons [Britons.?] 
and Normans.' 

' According to Jacques Cartier's statement, the Q^pe of Buona Vista was 
in 48° 30' north latitude. 

297 



298 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA 

" About thirty-three years ago, a ship of Honfleur 
first went there, of which vessel Jean Denis was cap- 
tain, and Gamart, of Rouen, pilot. In the year i5o8, 
a ship of Dieppe, called La Pensee, owned by Jean 
Ango, father of the captain and viscount of Dieppe, 
sailed there, the master or patron of the said ship 
being Thomas Aubert, and he was the first person 
who brought here people from that country. " ' 

In company with the Pensee, another ship, com- 
manded by Giovanni da Verrazzano, also sailed from 
the port of Dieppe. The two entering the river of St. 
Lawrence, ascended it to the distance of eighty leagues. 
The exploration of the river is thus described : "The 
people of Dieppe continued their commercial inter- 
course with the East Indies. When they heard of the 
discoveries which the Spaniards had made in America, 
they found their emulation incited, and they equipped 
two vessels to discover whether that part of the world 
did not extend its coast to the north. They intrusted 
the command of the ships to two of their most skillful 
captains, named Thomas Aubert and Jean Verassen. 
These two ships sailed from Dieppe at the beginning 
of the year i5o8, and discovered the same year the 
St. Lawrence River, to which they gave the name of 
Saint Lawrence because they began to ascend it on 
this saint's day [the tenth of August]. They explored 
the river for more than eighty leagues, finding the 
inhabitants friendly, with whom they made very profit- 
able exchanges for peltries." " 

' Raccolta di navigationi e viaggi. Ramusio. vol. iii. fol. 359. 

* " Les Dieppois coiitinuoient leiir commerce dans les Indes Orientales, lors- 
quils apprirent les d^cotivertes que les Espagnols avoient faites en Amerique : 
leur Emulation s^en trouva piquie, &= ils armerent deux vaisseaux, pour coiinottre 
si cette parti e du monde ne s'etendoit pas dti c6le du Nord ; ils en coufiirent 
le co7)imandctnent a deiix de leurs plus habiles Capitaines, nommis Thomas 
A ubert 6^ Jean Verassen. Ces deux navires partirent de Dieppe au commence- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 299 

As related in the chronicle of Eusebius, printed at 
Paris in i5i2, it appears that Aubert and Verrazzano, 
on their departure from the New Land, carried to 
France a number of natives. Under the date of i5o9, 
it is said : " Seven wild men were brought from that 
island (which is called the New Land) to Rouen with 
their canoe, clothing, and weapons. They are of a 
sooty color, with thick lips, and bearing marks on the 
face drawn like blue veins along the cheek-bones from 
the ear to the middle of the chin ; with black hair and 
coarse like a horse's mane ; having no beard through- 
out the whole life ; no hair on any part of the body, 
except on the head and eyebrows. They wear a 
girdle to cover their nakedness, in which girdle is a 
sort of pouch ; they form a dialect with their lips ; 
religion they have none. Their canoe is bark, which 
a man can lift on his shoulders with one hand. Their 
weapons are large bows, the strings being intestines 
or sinews of animals ; their arrows are canes barbed 
with flint or fish-bone. Their food is boiled flesh ; 
their drink water. Of bread and wine and money 
they have not the least use. They go naked or clad 
in the skins of beasts, — ^bears, deer, sea-calves, and the 
like. Their country, parallel to the seventh climate,^ 
is nearer the West^ than France is farther from it." ^ 

meiit de 1508, ^ dicouvrirent, la 7nime anne'e, le Fleuve Saint-Laurent , attquei 
Us donnirent ce nom, parce que ce fut ce jou7'-la qnils co)n7nench-ent a le 
remonter ; ce qtiils firent jusqu' a phis de qtiatre-vingt lieues, irouvant des ha- 
bitants affables, avec lesquels Us jirent des echanges les plus avantageux en pelle- 
tcries." — Memoires chronologiques pour servir a 1' historic de Dieppe at a celle 
de la navigation Frangoise. Jean Antoine Desmarquets. A Paris, 17S5. torn. 
i. pp. 99, 100. 

* " One of thirty regions or zones of the earth, parallel to the equator, cor- 
responding to the successive increase of a quarter of an hour in the length of 
the midsummer day." 

^ West coast of Ireland. 

^ Eusebii Caesariensis episcopi chronicon. * * * In alma Parisioru 
academia. Millesimo quingentesimo duodecimo Idibus vero lunij. fol. 172. 



300 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Although for a number of years, at the beginning- 
of the sixteenth century, this part of North America 
was visited by Enghsh, French, and Portuguese sea- 
men, it appears that no navigator had yet sailed along 
the peculiarly marked and sinuous coast of the new- 
continent between the thirty-fourth and the forty-fifth 
parallels of north latitude. Fortunately for France, 
Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine, who, in i5o8, 
had sailed with Aubert to the New Land, was sent a 
second time on a voyage of discovery toward the 
west.' As pertinently said by Asher : " What Cada- 
mosta had done for Portugal, Columbus for Spain, 
John Cabot for England, that Verrazzano did for 
France." ' 

The history of Verazzano's second visit to America 
rightly begins with the attempt of the king of Portugal, 
in 1 523, to impede the sailing of the vessels preparing 
for the voyage. The means which King John III. of 
Portugal employed to frustrate this undertaking are 
partly described by D'Andrada, the Portuguese his- 
torian. He says : "At that time the king was told by 
some Portuguese doing business in France that one 
Joao Varezano [Giovanni da Varrazzano], a Florentine, 
offered himself to Francis to discover other kino^doms 
in the East, which the Portuguese had not found, anS 
that in the ports of Normandy a fleet was making 
ready, under the patronage of the admirals of the coast 
and the dissimulation of Francis, to plant a colony in 
Santa Cruz, called Brazil, discovered and laid down by 
the Portuguese on the second voyage to India.^ Ac- 
cordingly, he [King John III.] sent to France an em- 

' Giovanni da Verrazzano, the son of Pier Andrea da Verrazzano, was 
bom at Florence about the year 14S0. 

* Henry Hudson, the navigator. By G. M. Asher. London, 1S60. 
■ Hakhiyt Society pub. Introduction, p. 79. 

* The voyage of Pedro Alvarez Cabral, in 150a 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 301 

bassador, Joao da Silveyra, son of Fernao da Silveyra, 
who delayed his going no longer than was necessary 
to get ready." ^ 

On his arrival at the court of France, Silveyra 
pursued his investigations respecting the expedition, 
and on the twenty-fifth of April, 1523, wrote to King 
John III., saying : 

" By what I hear Master Joao Verazano, who is 
going on the discovery of Cathay, has not left up to 
this date for want of opportunity, and because of dif- 
ferences, I understand, between himself and men; and 
on this point, although knowing nothing positively, I 
have written my doubts in accompanying letters. I 
shall continue to doubt, unless he take his departure." "^ 
Silveyra, according to what is said by D'Andrada, 
" accomplished nothing he had in hand except to delay 
the voyage of the Florentine." 

Notwithstanding the secret machinations of the 
king of Portugal, four vessels were finally fitted out 
and placed under the command of Verrazzano, " to 
discover new lands." Late in the year 1523, the fleet 
set sail, but having encountered a severe storm in the 
North Sea, all the ships were disabled, and Verrazzano, 
having returned to Brittany to repair the two barques, 
La Normandle and La Dauphine, afterward sailed 
in the Dauphine to the New Land.^ 

When he returned to France, he VvTOte an inter- 
esting letter to Francis L, king of France, dated " on 
board the ship La Dauphine, in the port of Dieppe, in 

' Cronica do muyto alto e muyto poderoso rey destes regnos de Portugal 
Dom Joao o III. deste nome. Francisco d'Andrada. Lisboa, 1613. part. i. 
cap. 13, 14. 

^ Letter of Joao da Silveyra to Dom Joao III. Arcliivo de Torre de 
Tombo. Corp. Cliion. part. i. ma. 29. doc. 54. 

* The ship La Dauphine is spoken of in the Italian text of Verrazzano's 
letter as " /a nave Daljina." Dalfina is the feminine form of the Italian word 
daljino, a dolphin. 



302 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Normandy, July 8, i524." ' In this communication Ver- 
razzano relates what had happened to his fleet in the 
North Sea, how he had carried out the orders of the 
kino- by sailing in the Dauphine toward the west to go 
to Cathay, where and when he discovered a new land 
never before seen by men of ancient or modern times. 
He then describes the people inhabiting the country, 
speaks of its various productions, mentions the peculiar 
physical features of its coast, tells how many leagues he 
had sailed along it, and concludes with a brief review 
of the discoveries made to the year i524 in the west- 
ern hemisphere. His remarks concerning his failure 
to find a convenient harbor where he first descried 
land, of his unsuccessful search for one south of the 
thirty-fourth parallel, of his steering afterward toward 
the north in quest of a haven, and of his disappoint- 
ment in this direction, are so applicable to the peculiar 
features of this part of the eastern coast of the United 
States, that it is easy to perceive that he faithfull}^ pic- 
tures the shores of South Carolina and North Carolina, 
along which he began his explorations. The compari- 
sons he makes respecting the natives, the flora, the 

' A manuscript containing the Italian text of Verrazzano's letter was found in 
1837, by G. W. Greene, consul from the United States at Rome, in the Maglia- 
becchian library of Florence, in a volume of miscellanies, marked " Class'xiii. 
Cod. 89. Verraz." With this letter was another written by Fernando Carli to 
his father, dated Lyons, August 4, 1524. As Carli remarks in his communication 
that it inclosed a copy of Verrazzano's letter to Francis I., it is believed tliat the 
transcript he speaks of is the copy found in the Magliabecchian library. — Vide 
Life and voyages of Verrazzano, by G. W. Greene. North American Re- 
view, vol. xlv. October, 1837. 

Ramusio placed in the third volume of his collection of voyages and travels 
a condensed form of Verrazzano's letter, entitled "The relation of Giovanni da 
Verrazzano, Florentine, to the most Christian king of France, Francis I., of 
the land l)y him discovered in the name of his majesty ; written at Dieppe, 
July 8, 1524. — Al Christianissimo Re Di Francia Francesco Prinio, Reliitione 
di Giovanni da Veri'azano Fioirniino della terra per liti scoperta in name di sua 
Maesta scriltain Dieppa, adi 8. Lu^^lio M.D.XXIIH." — Raccolta di navigalioni e 
viaggi. RamusiQ. vol. iii. fol. 350. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 303 

fauna, the climate, and the harbors of the more north- 
ern part of the coast, prove that he had travelled exten- 
sively in other parts of the world, and that he was 
well informed concerning the things he commented 
upon in his letter. His geographical knowledge is 
far in advance of that of the scientific men of his time, 
and he constantly shows that he was practically ac- 
quainted with all the known means which were then 
used to ascertain longitude, latitude, and the measure- 
ment of distances. His opinion that the Orient ex- 
tended around to the New Land was well founded, 
since it was not known until the eighteenth century 
that Behring's Strait separated America from Asia. 
His reasoning concerning the dimensions of the new 
continent, that if its breadth corresponded to the extent 
of its sea-coast it doubtless exceeded Asia in size, is 
logically correct. Verrazzano's hopefulness that infor- 
mation of a more satisfactory character respecting the 
extent of the territory of the New Land would be ob- 
tained by other explorers, shows that he was less 
thoughtful of the brilliancy of his own achievements 
than he was of the more desirable and important re- 
sults of future voyages to that part of the present coast 
of the United States, between the thirty-fourth and 
forty-fifth parallels, of which he is rightfully entitled to 
be regarded the discoverer. Verrazzano wrote :' 

" Most Serene Sire : 

" After the past fortune on the northern coasts I 
did not write to your most serene and Christian 
majesty concerning the success of the four vessels 
ordered to the ocean to discover new lands, thinking 

^The copy of Verrazzano's letter has this superscription : "■ II Capitano 
Giovanni da Verrazzano, Jiorentino di Normandie, al la sej-enissima corona di 
Francia, dice" : — Captain Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine, from Nor- 
mandy, to the most serene crown of France, says. 



304 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

that you would be informed of all : how, by the im- 
petuous stress of the winds, we were compelled, with 
only the ships La Normandie and La Dauphine, in a 
damaged condition, to put back to Brittany, where 
they were mended. Your serene majesty has heard 
of the wandering course we made with these, armed 
as in war, along the shores of Spain, and afterward of 
the new purpose to pursue, with the Dauphine alone, 
the first voyage, from which having returned, I will 
give your serene majesty an account of what we dis- 
covered/ 

" From the desert-rock ^ in the sea, near the island 
of Madeira of the most serene king of Portugal, we 
departed with the said Dauphine, on the seventeenth 

^ Hakluyt's translation of the letter published by Ramusio, in 1556, begins 
with these words . 

" I wrote not to your Maiesty, most Christian King, since the time we 
suffered the Tempest in the North paries, of the successe of the foure sliippes, 
which your Maiestie sent forth to discouer new lands by the Ocean, thinliing 
your Maiestie had bene already duely enformed thereof. Now by these pres- 
ents I will give your Maiestie to understand how by the violence of the Windes 
we were forced with tlie two shippes, the Norman and the Dolphin (in such 
euill case as they were), to land in Britaine. Wliere after wee had repayred 
them in all poynts as was needful, and armed tliem very well, we took our 
course along the coast of Spaine, which your Maiestie shall understand by the 
profile that we receiued thereby. Afterwards with the Dolphin alone we deter- 
mined to make discouerie of new Countries, to prosecute the Nauigation we 
had already begun, which I purpose at the present to recount unto to jiour 
Maiestie, to make manifest the whole proceeding of the matter. 

" The 17 of January, the yeere 1524, by the Grace of God, we departed 
from the dishabited rocke by the isle of Madeira {Alii, ly. Gcnaro, 1524. Dio 
gratia partimmo dallo scogUo dishabitaio), appertaining to the king of Portugal, 
with 50 men, with victuals, weapons, and other ship-munition very well pro- 
uided and furnished for eight months ; and sailing Westward with a faire East- 
erly winde {per Ponente naiiigando C07t vento di Lctiante assai piaceuole), in 25 
dayes we ran 500 leagues, and the 20 of Februarie {alii 20 Febraro), we were 
ouertaken with as sharpe and terrible a tempest as euer any saylers suffered, 
whereof with the diuine helpe and mercifuU assistance of Almighty God, and 
the goodnesse of our shippe, accompanied with the good happe of her fortunate 
name we were delivered." — F'/a'^ Voyages. London, 1600. vol. ii. p. 295. 

" One of three islands lying in a row from north to south, southeast of the 
island of Madeira, in north latitude 32° 30', off the west coast of Africa. The 
islands are called Ilhas Dezertas, and are only inhabited by sea-fowl. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 305 

of the past month of January, with fifty men, furnished 
with provisions, arms, and other martial instruments, 
and naval stores for eight months. Sailing westwardly, 
an easterly wind blowing pleasantly and moderately, 
we ran in twenty-five days 800 leagues.' On the 
fourteenth of February [il di 14 Febbrajd), we en- 
countered a storm as severe as any one navigating 
ever experienced, from which we were enabled 
with divine help and goodness to escape, to the 
praise of the glorious and fortunate name of the 
ship, which endured the violent waves of the sea, and 
we pursued our voyage, continuing toward the west, 
holding a little to the north. In twenty-five more days 
{in venti cinque altri giorni), we ran 400 other leagues, 
when there appeared a new land, never before seen by 
men In ancient or modern times. 

" At first it seemed to be somewhat low. On ap- 
proaching it within a quarter of a league, we saw by 
the large fires made on the shore that it was inhabited. 
We observed that the coast trended toward the south, 
and we inspected it to discover some harbor which we 
might enter with the ship to examine the nature of the 
land, but for fifty leagues along it we could not find a 
convenient haven where we could safely stay. Seeing 

^In Verrazzano's geographical explanation of the voyage, he assigns 62J 
miles to a degree and 4 miles to a marine league. According to this data, 15I 
marine leagues equal a degree. On Thevet's map of the fourth part of the 
world, printed in 1575, is a scale of leagues which shows that a marine league 
was double the length of a French league. With this information it is easy to 
ascertain the length of a degree in French leagues of Verrazzano's day ; 31^^ 
according to his explanation, equalling a degree. Columbus made 56I miles 
equal an equinoctial degree and 60 miles equal to 15 leagues. Pigafetta assigned 
17^ leagues to a degree. "The land-league is three miles," he says, "the 
sea-league is four." The modern nautical league is one-twentieth of a degree, 
or three equatorial miles 01 3.45785 statute miles. A sea-mile, according to the 
United States standard, is equal to 1. 152664 common statute or land-miles. 
One degree of longitude at the equator is equal to 6g. 160 land-miles. A French 
geographical league, according to Verrazzano's reckoning, equals 2-^- land-miles 
of the United Stales standard. 



3o6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the coast continued to run toward the south, we deter- 
mined to turn and go back to the north, where we 
found the same want of harbors as we ascended the 
coast." 

The New Land {Nuova Terra), discovered by Ver- 
razzano, was first seen by him on the tenth of March, 
{old style) being that part of the coast of the con- 
tinent now included in the present territory of North 
Carohna, north of Cape Fear,' on the thirty-fourth par- 
allel of north latitude. It appears that Verrazzano had 
thought of finding land on his way to the Indies, for 
he says : " My intention in this voyage was to reach 
Cathay, on the extreme coast of Asia, expecting, how- 
ever, to find in the newly discovered land some such 
obstacle as I found." 

" Ordering a boat to carry us ashore, we beheld," 
says Verrazzano, " many people who had collected on 
the beach. Seeing us approaching, they fled. Some, 
however, turned and gazed at us with much curiosity. 
Assuring them by various signs, a number came near, 
manifesting great delight in scrutinizing the peculiarities 
of our clothing, figure, and whiteness. They indicated 
by signs where we could most easily land with the 
boat, and proffered us some of their food. What we 
were able to learn of their life and customs while' on 
land, I will briefly relate to your majesty. 

" They go nearly naked, wearing only about the 
loins some skins of small animals similar to the 
martens. A girdle of woven grass encircles the body, 
to which they fasten the tails of animals, which hang 
down as far as the knees. All the rest of the body is 
nude, as is also the head. Some of them wear drapery 
in like manner made of the feathers of birds. The color 

' Cape Fear is in 33° 48' noi-tli lalitiule. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 307' 

of these people is black (iieri), not very different from 
that of the Ethiopians. Their hair is black and thick, 
but not very long ; it is worn tied back upon the head 
in the form of a little tail.' In person they are of good 
proportion, of middle-stature, a little above our own, 
broad across the breast, strong in the arms, and well- 
formed in the legs and other parts of the body ; the 
only exception to their good looks is that they have 
broad faces, but not all of them, for we saw many 
who had sharp ones, with large black eyes and a 
fixed expression. They are not very strong in body, 
but acute in mind, active and swift of foot as far as 
we could perceive by observation. They greatly re- 
semble in these two last particulars the_ people of 
the East, especially those of the remote regions. We 
were not able to learn much concerninof their habits on 
account of our short stay on land and the distance of 
our ship from the shore." 

Verrazzano designated his first landing-place on 
the coast of the New Land by calling it Diepa, the 
Italian form of the French name Dieppe, that of the 
port from which he had sailed to make discoveries in 
the western hemisphere. Visconte de Maiollo, on his 
map of the world made in 1627, places the name Diepa 
on the coast of Francesca, a little north of Terra 
Florida.^ 

Describing his next place of anchorage, Verrazzano 
says : " We found not far from this people another, 
whose mode of life we judged to be similar to that of 

' The translation of Verrazzano's letter by Joseph G. Cogswell, contained 
in the New York Historical Society's collections, second series, vol. i. pp. 37- 
54, will be followed hereafter, except when a better rendering may be presented. 

^ Vide section of Maiollo map in the cover-pocket. The scale of latitudes 
on the margin of this part of the map has been appended to indicate the posi- 
tion given to places by Visconte de Maiollo. A similar scale is engraved on 
another part of the rare map. 



3o8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

the former. The whole shore is covered with fine sand 
about fifteen feet deep, rising in the form of little hills 
about fifty paces broad. Ascending farther, we found 
several arms of the sea which, entering through inlets, 
washed the shore on each side as the coast trends. 
An extensive country appears, rising somewhat above 
the level of the sandy beach in beautiti.il fields and 
broad plains, covered with immense forests, more or 
less dense, the foliage of the trees being of various 
colors, too attractive and charming to be described. I 
do not believe that these are like the Hercynian forest, 
or the rough solitudes of Scythia, or the northern 
regions full of vines and trees, but growing with palms,' 
laurels, cypresses, and other varieties of trees unknown 
in Europe, which exhale a very sweet fragrance a 
great distance. We could not examine them closely 
for the reasons already mentioned, and not on account 
of any difficulty in traversing the woods, which, on the 
contrary, are easily penetrated. 

" As the Orient stretches around to this country," 
I do not think that it Is devoid of the same kind of 
drugs and aromatic liquors, nor of other resources as 
gold and the like, which the color of the earth indi- 
cated.3 The country abounds with many animals as 
deer, stags, hares, and the like. It is plentifully Sup- 
plied with lakes and ponds of running water, and with 
a great variety of birds, fit and useful for every kind of 
pleasant and delightful sport. This land lies in 34°. 

' Palmetto trees. 

* It was not until 172S that this conception of the navigator was disproved. 
Then Vitus Behring discovered tlie strait whicli divides the two continents. 
The distance between East Cape in Asia and Cape Prince of Wales on the con- 
tinent of America is forty-five miles. 

* '^Ne pensiamo participando dello oriente per la circtimferenza sieno senza 
qualche drogheria o liquore ai-ornatico, et altre divitie oro ed altro del quale colore 
la terra tulla tcnde." 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 309 

The air is salubrious, pure, and of a temperature 
neither hot nor cold. There are no impetuous winds 
in these regions, the most prevalent being the north- 
west and west, 

" When we were there in summer-time the sky- 
was clear with little rain, and if fogs and mists were at 
any time driven in by the south wind, they quickly 
disappeared, and the sky became again serene and 
bright. The sea is tranquil and not stormy. Although 
the whole coast is low and without harbors, it is not 
dangerous to navigate, being free from rocks and bold, 
so that within four or five fathoms from the shore 
there are twenty-four feet of water at all times of tide, 
and this depth uniformly increases as you go farther 
into the sea. The holding ground is so good that no 
ship can part her cable, however strong the wind may 
be, as we proved by experience, for while riding at 
anchor on the coast we were overtaken by a gale in 
the beginning of March, when the winds are high, as is 
usual in all countries, and we found our anchor broken 
before it started from its place or moved at all." 

" March being the season in our southern climate, 
when vegetation of all kinds is putting forth," says an 
American writer, residing in South Carolina, " the 
woods presented to the stranger a greater variety of 
charms than he had ever beheld. The trees, green 
and beautiful with the living verdure of our early 
spring, were bending down v/ith rich clusters of golden 
jessamine, which spread their rich perfume over the 
whole air, while the underbrush embraced a collection 
of aromatic shrubs and wild flowers, which might easily 
be mistaken for the rich spices of oriental production." ' 

After inspecting the sandy, harborless shore of On- 

* Historical collections of South Carolina. By B. R. Carroll, vol. i. p. xxi. 



3IO DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

slow Bay, Verrazzano sailed eastwardly in order to 
double Cape Lookout, in 34° 37' north latitude. " We 
set sail from this place," he says, " continuing to coast 
along the shore, which we found turned to the west, 
[east in the direction in which he was sailing]. The 
inhabitants were numerous, for we saw every-where 
many fires.' While at anchor on this coast, there being 
no harbor to enter, we sent the boat to the shore with 
twenty-five men to obtain water, but it was impossible 
to land without endangering the boat, on account of 
the very high surf thrown upon the shore by the sea, 
as it was an open roadstead.^ Many natives came to 
the beach, and signified by various friendly signs that 
we might trust ourselves on land. One of their noble 
deeds of friendship deserves to be made known to your 
majesty. A young sailor was attempting to swim 
ashore through the surf to carry them some knick- 
knacks, as little bells, looking-glasses, and similar 
trifles, when after approaching near to three or four 
natives and casting them the things and turning about 
to get back to the boat, he was overturned by the 
waves and so dashed by them upon the beach that he 
lay there as if he were dead. When the people saw 
him in this condition they ran and took him up by the 
head, legs, and arms, and carried him some distance 
from the surf. The young man, finding himself borne 
off in this way, uttered very loud shrieks in fear and 
dismay, while they answered as best they could in 
their language, intimating that he had no cause for 
fear. Afterward they laid him down at the foot of a 
little hill, where tuey took off his shirt and trousers, and 

' In Ramusio's text the word is oriente, east. Raccolta di navigalioni e 
viaggi. Ramusio. vol. ii. fol. 350. 

It was the custom of the aborigines to set fire to the underbrush in spring to 
enable them to hunt and to inclose game within the limits of the burning wood. 

' The harbor of Beaufort was too far inland to be seen by Verrazzano. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 311 

examined him, expressing the greatest astonishment 
at the whiteness of his skin. Our sailors in the boat 
seeing a great fire kindled and their companion placed 
very near it, full of fear, as is usual in all cases of a 
novel character, imagined that the natives were about 
to roast him for food. But as soon as he had recovered 
his strength, after a short stay with them, and had 
shown by signs that he wished to return to the boat, 
they affectionately hugged him and accompanied him 
to the beach, where leaving him, they withdrew to a 
little hill, that he might feel more free, and watched 
him until he was safe in the boat. This young man 
reported that these people were black as the others, 
that they had shining skin, middle-stature, but sharper 
faces and very delicate bodies and limbs, and that they 
were inferior in strength but quicker in thought. This 
is all he observed." 

After this adventure, which likely occurred some- 
where on the coast near the thirty-sixth parallel, per- 
haps in the vicinity of Roanoke Island, North Caro- 
lina, Verrazzano steered northwardly, and while sailing 
at night passed by the entrance to Chesapeake Bay 
and anchored off the coast of Virginia, some distance 
north of Cape Charles, which is in 37° 3'. 

"Departing from this place [the coast of North 
Carolina], and always following the coast which trended 
toward the north, we came," says Verrazzano, "in the 
space of fifty leagues to another land, which appeared 
very beautiful and full of large forests. We approached 
it and going ashore with twenty men, went back from 
the coast about two leagues, and found that the people 
had fied and hid themselves in the woods in fear. By 
searching around we discovered in the grass a very 
old woman with a young girl of about eighteen or 



312 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

twenty years of age, who had concealed themselves 
for the same reason. The old woman carried two in- 
fants on her shoulders, and behind her neck a litde boy 
about eight years old. When we came upon them 
they began to shriek and make signs to the men who 
had fled to the woods. We gave them a part of our 
provisions, which they accepted with delight, but the 
girl would not touch any, every thing we offered to 
her being thrown down in great anger. We took the 
litde boy from the old woman to carry him with us to 
France, and would have taken the girl also, who was 
very beautiful and very tall, but it was impossible on 
account of the piercing shrieks she uttered, when we 
attempted to lead her away. Having to pass some 
woods, and being far from the ship, we determined to 
leave her and only take the boy. We found these 
people fairer i^piii bianchi) than those we had passed. 
From certain grasses hanging from the branches of 
trees, they make their clothing ; the grasses being 
woven together with threads of wild hemp. Their 
heads were uncovered and of the same shape as the 
other natives we had seen. Their food is a kind of 
pulse which abounds there, different in color and in 
size from ours, and of a very pleasant taste. Besides 
they use birds and fish for food, which they take with 
snares, and bows made of hard wood. Their arrows 
are reeds, in the ends of which they fasten the bones 
of fish and of animals. The animals in these regions 
are wilder than those in Europe by being more fre- 
quently molested by those hunting them. We saw 
many of their boats constructed of a single tree, 
twenty feet long and four feet wide, fabricated without 
the use of stone or iron or other metal. Along the 
whole coast which we explored for the space of two 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 313 

hundred leagues, we saw no stone of any sort. To 
hollow out the log they burn as much of it as will form 
the concave part of the boat, and also form the ends 
which are to be the prow and stern, to make the boat 
float well. The land in situation, fertility, and beauty 
is like the other, covered with forests, filled with dif- 
ferent kinds of trees but not such fragrant ones, since 
the region is farther north and colder." 

While exploring the peninsula of Virginia, the 
warm-hearted and sympathetic Florentine was pleas- 
ingly reminded of his own delightful country by seeing 
many wild grape-vines festooning the tall forest trees. 
He observed that the savages carefully removed the 
shading shrubbery near the prolific vines, so that the 
ripening rays of the sun could fall on the green fruit. 

" We saw in this country," he says, "many vines 
growing naturally, entwining themselves about the 
trees, climbing as they do in Cisalpine Gaul, which, if 
they were dressed in the right way of cultivation by 
husbandmen, they would produce without doubt the 
best of wines, because often the fruit of that drinking 
is agreeable and sweet, seeing it is not different from 
our own, i^perche piu volte ilfrutto di qitello beeiido, veg- 
gendo suave e dolce noii dal nost7^o differente). The 
vines are held in high estimation by the inhabitants, 
for they take away all the surrounding concealing 
shrubbery to enable the fruit to grow.^ 

* In Hakluyt's translation of the text of Ramusio's condensed copy of Ver- 
razzano's letter is the following respecting the vines of Virginia : "We saw in 
this country many vines growing naturally, which, growing up, took holde of 
the trees as they doe in Lombardie, which if by husbandmen they were dressed 
in good order, without all doubt they would yeeld excellent wines ; for hauing 
oftentimes scene the fruit thereof dryed ; which was sweete and pleasant, and 
not differing from ours, we thinke that they doe esteeme the same, because 
in euery place where they growe, they take away the under branches growing 
round about, that the fruit thereof may ripen the better." — Voyages. Hakluyt. 
vol. ii. p. 297. 



314 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" We also found," Verrazzano further relates," wild 
roses, violets, lilies, and many kinds of plants and 
fragrant flowers differing from our own. We cannot 
describe the habitations of the people as the structures 
were in the interior, but from various indications we 
concluded they were formed of trees and shrubs. 
There were also many signs which led us to suppose 
that the inhabitants often sleep in the open air without 
any covering but the sky. We are ignorant of their 
other habits. We believe, however, that all the people 
we were among live in the same way." 

When Verrazzano w^as on land with the twenty 
men, he crossed the narrow peninsula of Virginia and 
beheld the wide expanse of Chesapeake Bay.' This 
great body of water, stretching toward the north and 
south as far as he could see, and spreading westward to 
an unknown distance, led the surprised explorer to 
imagine that it was a part of the Indian Ocean, i^Mare 
Indicum), by which, if there were a navigable entrance 
to it, he might sail to Cathay." Ignorant of the fact that 
he had already passed at night the channel leading to this 
expanse of water, Verrazzano entertained the thought 
that he mis^ht discover one alonof the coast farther 
northward. AlthouQ^h he determined not to sail as^ain 
at night along the New Land, and resolved to inspect 
its coast more closely thereafter, he failed to find a 
passage to the assumed western sea, when he sailed 
northward. After returning to France, he made a map 

* Chesapeake Bay " extends 190 miles from its mouth, into the States of 
Virginia and Maryland ; it is from 7 to twenty miles broad, and generally 9 
fathoms deep." 

The peninsula is " about 60 miles long, and from 10 to 15 wide, and 
bounded toward the sea by a string of low sandy islets. The waters of the 
Chesapeake enter the sea between Cape Charles and Cape Henry, forming a 
strait of fifteen miles in width." — Gazetteer of Virginia and the District of 
Columbia. By Joseph Martin. 1835. pp. 23, 18. 

^ Vide Maiollo map of 1527 in the cover-pocket. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 315 

on which he represented this sea separated from the 
Atlantic Ocean by a narrow neck of land, similar in out- 
line and situation to the northern part of the peninsula 
of Virginia. This is corroborated by Hakluyt, the 
English collector, who says : " Master John Verazanus, 
which had been thrise on that coast, in an olde excel- 
lent mappe which he gave to King Henrie the eight, 
and is yet in the custodie of Master Locke, doth so lay 
it out."' 

Verrazzano's brother, Hieronymus, also made a map 
of New France, on which he placed this explanatory 
inscription respecting this part of the coast, which he 
also delineates as a narrow tract of land : " From this 
eastern sea [the Atlantic] one beholds the western sea ; 
there are six miles of land between them." ^ The Sea 
of Verrazzano [Afare de Verrasana), represented on 
the fan-shaped map made by Michael Locke, in i582," 
was, as Hakluyt affirms, " according to Verazanus 
plat," which " laieth out the sea makinge a litde necke 
of land in 40 degrees of latitude much like the streyte 
necke or istmus of Dariena."^ 

Sailing northwardly from the peninsula of Virginia, 
Verrazzano proceeded leisurely along the coast 
searching for an entrance to the so-called western 
sea. Although he does not speak of entering Dela- 
ware Bay, there is no testimony to contradict the asser- 
tion that he explored it. Describing his voyage along 
the coasts of the present states of Maryland, Delaware, 
and New Jersey, Verrazzano writes : " After hav- 
ing remained here three days, riding at anchor 

* " Epistle dedicatorie " to Hakluyt's Divers voyages, 15S2. 

^ " Da qussto mare orientale si vede il mare occideniale j sono 6 miglia di 
terra infra F uno a I' altro." 

^ Hakluyt's Particular discourse, 1584. 

Tlie English collector illustrates his Divers voyages with Locke's map, 
which the English cartographer dedicated to Sir Philip Sidney. 



3i6 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

off the coast [of Virginia], for we could not find a 
harbor, we determined to depart, sailing always 
along the shore, which trended to the northeast, only 
navigating in day-time and coming to anchor at night." 

About the last of April, i524, the Dauphine arrived 
ofT the low point of land, now called Sandy Hook, 
designated on Maiollo's map of i52y as C. de S. Maria 
(Cape of St. Mary).' Seeing the convenient haven 
north of it, Verrazzano changed the vessel's course and 
slowly sailed into the spacious roadstead. Having 
found a suitable riding-place, the French barque cast 
her anchor in the sight of a multitude of interested 
natives, who from the neighboring hills witnessed the 
first mooring of a European ship in the tranquil waters 
of the large bay. 

The ship's boat being manned, Verrazzano began 
to explore the mouth of the great river, as he designated 
the channel now called the Narrows. Eajjer to know 
the destination of the strange explorers, the curious 
natives thronged the shores of Staten and Lons: islands 
as Verrazzano and his men passed up the Narrows in 
mid-stream toward the upper bay, which the enthusiastic 
Italian denominated a very beautiful lake. Entering 
the commodious bay, Verrazzano hastily surveyed its 
islands and inlets, the mouth of the noble river»flowing 
into it, and the distant highlands dimly defined along 
the northern horizon. Describing his short exploration 
of the upper bay of New York, Verrazzano writes : 

" At the end of one hundred leagues we discovered 
a very delightful place among some small hills, eminen- 
ces, between which ran a very great river {iina graii- 
dissima riviera) to the ocean, which was deep within 
to the mouth, and from the sea to the enlargement of 

' Sandy Hook light-house is in 40° 27' 39" north latitude. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 317 

the bay the rise of the tide was eight feet, and through 
it any heavy ship can pass/ 

" As in good duty we did not wish to run the risk 
of penetrating the coast without knowledge of the mouth 
of the river, we took the boat and entered the river with- 
in the country where we found it to be thickly inhabited 
and the people resembling the others we had seen, 
adorned with birds' feathers of different colors, comine 
toward us with evident delight, uttering very loud cries 
of admiration, indicating, if we had to land with the 
boat, where it was most safe. We entered the said 
river within the country about half a league, where 
we saw it formed a most beautiful lake (tm bellissimo 
lago), about three leagues in compass, upon which we 
saw boats, thirty in number, moving from one part to 
another with innumerable people, who passed from 
shore to shore to see us.^ Very suddenly, as is wont 
to happen to those navigating, an impetuous contrary 
wind blew in from the sea, compelling us to return to 
the ship. We departed from this region with much 
displeasure on account of its extent and attractiveness, 
for we believed that it was not without some resources 
of wealth as all the hills indicated the existence of 
minerals in them." 

' At Sandy Hook, a low, sandy point of land, eighteen miles from the city 
of New York, are two ship-channels through wliich vessels of the heaviest 
tonnage can pass. Immediately north of Sandy Hook is the spacious road- 
stead called the Lower Bay. Between Staten Island, north of it, and Long 
Island is the Narrows, a channel about one mile and a half long by one wide. 
North of it is the Upper Bay or harbor of New York. 

^ The Upper Bay or harbor of New York, about eight miles long by five 
wide, lies between the mouth of the Hudson River on the norlh and the 
Narrows on the south. From the bay, vessels can pass into the East River 
and thence to Long Island Sound, between Long Island and the main-land. 
Westward is Newark Bay, through which vessels can pass from the Upper Bay 
of New York, thence into Staten Island Sound, thence into Raritan Bay and 
the Lower Bay. The rise and fall of the tide in the harbor of New York is 
about four and a half feet. 



3i8 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

As a geographical designation for the very great 
river {ima grandissima riviera), the name Grande 
(Great) River was used by some of the most celebrated 
map-makers of Europe, during the sixteenth century. 
In the seventeenth century, when the Dutch took 
possession of this part of New France, the Dutch syn- 
onym, " Groote," was substituted for the Italian desig- 
nation. The Spaniards, who explored the coast of 
North America after Verrazzano had inspected it, gave 
different names to the river. 

Henry Hudson was induced to explore the Grande 
River by Captain John Smith, who believed that the 
English navigator could find a strait connecting it with 
the western sea (Mare Indicum) delineated on Verraz- 
zano's map. In the summer of 1609, when Hudson 
attempted to sail to Asia by a passage north of Novaya 
Zemlya, and was compelled to abandon the project 
on account of the barrier of ice surrounding the island, 
it is said he placed before the officers and crew of the 
Half Moon (Halve Maen), the choice of one of two pro- 
posals. Respecting the proposals of which they had the 
consideration, the Dutch historian. Van Meteren, thus 
speaks : " Master Hudson gave them their choice of 
two things, the first was to go to the coast of America, 
at the fortieth degree of latitude, mostly incited to this 
by letters and maps which a certain Captain Smith had 
sent him from Virginia, and on which he showed him 
a sea by which he might circumnavigate their southern 
colony [Virginia] from the north, and from there pass 
into a western sea. The other proposal was to seek 
the passage by Davis's Strait." ' 

Hudson, besides knowing the situation of the noble 

' Belgische ofte Nederlandsclie oorlogen ende geschiedenissen beginnende 
van 't jaer 1595 tot 1611. — Door Emanuel van Meteren. 1611. Lock xxx. 
fol. 327. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 319 

stream, was also informed that it was called the Great 
(Grande) River. Robert Juet, the journalist of the 
voyage of 1609, recording the incidents of the last 
day's exploration of the river, writes : " Within a 
while after, we came out also of the p-reat mouth of 
the great RiuerT ^ 

De Laet, the Dutch historian, writing in 1625, 
mentions the fact that the Dutch used the name 
" Great " for the river in preference to all the other 
appellations designating it : " The great north river 
of New Netherland was called by some the Manhattes 
river, from the people who dwell near its mouth ; by 
others, Rio de Montaignes (River of the Mountains), 
but by our countrymen it was mostly called ' de groote 
rieviere ' (the Great river)." ^ As early as the year 
1624, the name " Hudson's River" was inscribed on 
maps to designate the stream discovered by Verraz- 
zano.3 

Sailing from the mouth of the Grande River, be- 
tween the Cape of Saint Mary (C. de S. Maria) and 
the point of land denominated Anguileme'* on Maiollo's 
map of 1 527, Verrazzano coasted along the south side 
of Long Island for fifty leagues, at the end of which 
he passed the eastern extremity of the island, now 

^ Purchas his Pilgrimes. vol. iii. p. 595. 

^ '' De groote noordt rievier van Nieiiw-Nederlandt wordt hy eenighe 
gkenoemt de Manhattes rieviere naer volckeren die by naer aent begin ofte de 
mout van de rieviere luoonen y by andere oock Rio de Montaigne ; dock hy de onse 
wordt nieest genoemt de groote rieviere." — Nieuwe Wereldt. Door Johannes de 
Laet. Tot Leyden, 1625. Boeck iii. cap. ix. 

^ Vide map entitled : 't Noorder deel van West-Indien, contained in the 
rare work in Dutch : West-Indische Spieghel. Door Alhanasium Inga, 
Penien, van Cusco, Amsterdam, 1624. The map-maker's name, A. Goos, 
is inscribed on the chart. 

* Angouleme, a town on the Charente River, in France, sixty-six miles 
northeast of Bordeaux. Angouleme, with the territory of Angoumois, was 
governed from the ninth to the fourteenth century by counts. Francis I., be- 
fore he became king of France, was Comte d' Angouleme. 



320 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

called Montauk Point. While seeking, during a storm, 
a port of refuge eastward of Long Island, Verrazzano 
discovered the island now called Block Island, which 
he describes as triangular in form, and in size about 
equal to the island of Rhodes." Block Island lies 
southwest of Narragansett Bay, and is about eight 
miles lonor and about five miles broad at its widest 
part. Verrazzano called it Luisa, the name of the 
mother of King Francis I., Louise, the daughter of 
Philippe, duke of Savoy. The orthography of the 
Italian name, as presented by Visconte de Maiollo 
on his map of the world of 1627, was soon corrupted 
by map-makers, and on a number of charts of the six- 
teenth century it is inscribed " Brisa " and " Briso." 
The names " Claude " and " Claudia " appear on some 
maps as designations for it, used most likely, in honor 
of Claude, the wife of Francis I., the first being the 
French orthography of the appellation, and the latter 
the Italian. 

The departure of the Dauphine from the mouth of 
the Grande River, Verrazzano thus describes : " Weigh- 
ing anchor, we sailed fifty leagues toward the east, as 
the coast trended in that direction, and always in sight 
of it. At the end of the course Vve discovered an 
island of a triangular form about ten leagues from tlib 
main-land, in size about equal to the island of Rhodes, 
having many hills covered with trees, and well peo- 
pled, judging from the great number of fires we saw 
all around it. We gave it the name of your majesty's 
illustrious mother. We did not land on it, as the 
weather was unfavorable." 

Sailing northeasterly from Block Island, the Italian 
explorer beheld the coast of the main-land, and an- 

* The island of Rhodes, lying olT the southwest coast of Asia Minor, be- 
tween 35" 50' and 36° 30' north latitude, has an area of about 452 squaie miles. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 321 

chored the Dauphine in Narragansett Bay, Rhode 
Island. Speaking of the discovery of the commodious 
bay, designated on Maiollo's map by the ItaHan name, 
" Refugio," Verrazzano says : 

" We proceeded to another place fifteen leagues 
distant from the island, where we found a very excel- 
lent harbor. Before entering it we saw about twenty 
small boats filled with people, who came to the ship 
with various cries and wonderment. But they would 
not approach nearer than fifty paces. Stopping, they 
looked at the structure of the ship, our persons, and 
dress. Afterward they all cried out loudly together, 
signifying that they were delighted. By imitating 
their signs we inspired them with a measure of confi- 
dence, so that they came near enough for us to toss 
them some little bells and glasses and many toys, 
which they took and looked at laughing, and then 
came on board without fear. Amone them were two 
kings more attractive in form and stature than can be 
described. One was about forty years old, the other 
about twenty-four, and they were dressed in the fol- 
lowinof fashion. 

" The elder king had the skin of a deer wrapped 
around his nude body, artificially made with various 
embroideries to decorate it. His head was bare. His 
hair was bound behind with various bands, and around 
his neck he wore a large chain ornamented with many 
stones of different colors. The younger king was like 
him in appearance. This was the finest-looking people 
and the handsomest in their costumes that we found 
in our voyage. They exceed us in size, and are of a 
very fair complexion {sono di colore bianchissimo) ; 
some of them incline more to a white, and others to a 
tawny color. Their faces are sharp ; their hair is long 



322 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

and black, on the adornment of which they bestow 
great care. Their eyes are black and keen ; their 
demeanor is gentle and attractiv^e, very much like that 
of the ancients. I say nothing to your majesty of the 
other parts of the body that are all in good proportion 
as belong to well-formed men. 

"The women resemble them in size, and are very 
graceful and handsome, and quite attractive in dress 
and manners. They had no other clothing except a 
deer-skin, ornamented as were the skins worn by the 
men. Some had very rich lynx-skins upon their arms, 
and wore various ornaments upon their heads, braided 
In their hair, which hung down upon their breasts. 
Others wore different ornaments, such as those of the 
women of Egypt and Syria. The older and the mar- 
ried people, both men and women, wore many orna- 
ments in their ears, hanging down in Oriental fashion. 

" We saw on them pieces of wrought copper, which 
is more esteemed by them than gold, the latter being 
deemed the most ordinary of metals, yellow being a 
color much disliked by them. Blue and red are the 
colors which they value most highly. Of the things 
which we gave them, they preferred the bells, azure 
crystals, and other toys, which they hung in their ears 
and about their necks. They do not value or desire to 
have silk or gold-drapery, or other kinds of cloth, nor 
Implements of steel or iron. When we showed them 
our weapons, they expressed no admiration, and only 
asked how they were made. The same indifference 
was manifested when they were given the looking- 
glasses, which they with smiles returned to us as soon 
as they had looked at them. They are very generous, 
giving away whatever they have. 

" We formed a great friendship with them, and one 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 323 

day we entered into port with our ship, having before 
rode at the distance of a league from the shore, as the 
weather was unfavorable. They came to the ship with 
a number of their little boats, with their faces painted 
with different colors, manifesting real signs of joy, 
bringing us of their provisions, and signifying to us 
where we could best ride in safety with our ship, 
and keeping with us until we had cast anchor. 

" We remained among them fifteen days to pro- 
vide ourselves with many things of which we were in 
want, during which time they came every day to see 
our ship, bringing with them their wives, of whom they 
were very careful, for, although they came on board 
themselves, and remained a long while, they made 
their wives stay in the boats, nor could we ever get 
them on board by any solicitations or any presents we 
could make them. One of the two kings, however, 
often came with his queen and many attendants to see 
us for his amusement. But he always stopped on land 
at the distance of about two hundred paces from us, 
and sent a boat to announce his intended visit, saying 
they would come and see our ship. This was done 
for safety, and as soon as they had received our an- 
swer, they came and remained some time to look 
around. On hearing the annoying cries of the sailors, 
the king sent the queen, with her attendants, in a very 
light boat to wait, near an island, a quarter of a league 
distant, while he remained a long time on board, talk- 
ing with us by signs, and expressing his fanciful no- 
tions about every thing in the ship, and asking the use 
of all. After imitatinsf our modes of salutation, and 
tasting our food, he courteously took leave of us. 
Once, when our men remained two or three days on 
a small island near the ship for their various necessi- 



324 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

ties, as sailors are wont to do, he came with seven or 
eight of his attendants to inquire about our movements, 
often askinof us if we intended to remain there lonof, 
and offering us every thing at his command. Some- 
times he would shoot with his bow, and run up and 
down with his people, making great sport for us. We 
often went five or six leagues into the interior, and 
found the country as pleasant as can be conceived, 
adapted to cultivation of every kind, whether of corn, 
wine, or oil. There are open, plains twenty-five and 
thirty leagues in length, entirely free from trees or 
other obstructions, and so fertile that whatever is sown 
there will yield an excellent crop. On entering the 
woods, we observed that they might all be traversed 
by any large army. The trees in them v/ere oaks, cy- 
presses, and others unknown in Europe. We found, 
also, apples, plums, filberts, and many other fruits, but 
of a difTerent kind from ours. The animals, which are 
in great numbers, stags, deer, lynx, and many other 
kinds, are taken with snares and by bows ; the latter is 
the principal weapon of the natives. Their arrows are 
beautifully made. For points they use emery, jasper, 
hard marble, and other sharp stones instead of iron. 
They also use the same kind of sharp stones in cutting 
down trees, and with them construct their boats of single 
logs, hollowed out with admirable skill, and sufficient- 
ly commodious to seat ten or twelve persons. Their 
oars are short, with broad blades, and are rowed by 
the force of the arms, with the greatest care and as 
rapidly as they wish. 

" We saw their dwellings, which are circular in form, 
about ten or twelve paces in circumference, made of 
logs split in half, without any regularity of architecture, 
and covered with roofs of straw, nicely put on, which 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 325 

protect them from wind and rain. Tliere is no doubt 
that they would build stately edifices if they had work- 
men as skillful as ours, for the whole sea-coast abounds 
with shining stones, crystals, and alabaster, and on this 
account it has dens and retreats for animals. They 
change their habitations from place to place, as circum- 
stances of situation and season may require. This is 
easily done, for they have only to take with them their 
mats, and they have other houses immediately pre- 
pared. 

" The father and the whole family dwell together 
in one house. In some of their houses we saw twenty- 
five or thirty persons. Their food is pulse, as that of 
the other people, which is here better than elsewhere, 
and more carefully cultivated. In the time of sowing 
they are governed by the moon, which they think ef- 
fects the sprouting of the grain. They have many 
other ancient customs. They live by hunting and 
fishing, and they are long lived. If they fall sick * 
* * ' they cure themselves without medicine, with 
the heat of fire. Death comes to them at last from 
extreme old age. We judged them to be very affec- 
tionate and charitable toward their relatives, for they 
make loud lamentations in their adversity, and in their 
misery call to remembrance all their good deeds. 
When they die their relations mutually join in weep- 
ing mingled with singing for a long while. This is all 
that we could learn of them. 

" This region is situated on the parallel of Rome, 
in 4i| degrees, as I shall narrate hereafter to your 
serene majesty.^ At present I shall describe the situa- 
tion of this place. At its south end the channel is nar- 

* Blank space in the original copy. 

'Newport is in 41° 29', and the city of Providence in 41° 49' 22" north 
latitude. 



326 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

row and a half league wide. It extends, between east 
[south ?], and north, twelve leagues. Then it enlarges 
and forms a very spacious bay twenty leagues in cir- 
cuit, in which are five small islands, very fertile and 
attractive, and covered with high trees. The bay is so 
spacious that between these islands any number of 
vessels might ride at ease without fear of tempests and 
and other dangers. At the entrance of the bay, farther 
south, there are very attractive hills on both sides of 
the channel, and many streams of clear water flow 
from the eminences into the sea. In the middle of the 
mouth there is a rock of freestone {iino scoglio di viva 
pictra)y formed by nature and suitable for the construc- 
tion of any kind of machine or bulwark for the defence 
of the haven." 

Verrazzano's description of Narragansett Bay, 
named Port du Refuge on Gastaldi's map of i553,^ is 
so accurate that without any other information it would 
be easy to determine the situation of the place where 
for fifteen days, ending the sixth of May {old style), he 
and his crew held familiar intercourse with the friendly 
Indians inhabitinof the islands and the main-land in the 
vicinity of the anchorage of the Dauphine. The lati- 
tude of the bay given by Verrazzano cannot be gainsaid."" 

' Vide Gastaldi's map. 

'As described by a late writer ; "Narragansett Bay is one of the most 
beautiful sheets of water in the United States ; it is unrivalled for its navigable 
advantages, affording at all times a safe and ready communication witli the 
ocean ; and its shores, which are indented with innumerable bays and inlets 
containing many excellent harbors. This bay * * * extends more 
than thirty miles into the interior of the state, and for this distance affords 
superior advantages for ship-navigation. The whole extent of the bay and 
river, from Point Judith to Providence, is about thirty-six miles. The average 
breadth of the lower section of the bay is nearly ten miles ; but the upper part 
is narrow. Exclusive of the islands, of which there are about fifteen in num- 
ber, and some of considerable extent, the waters of the bay comprise an area of 
about one hundred and thirty square miles." — Gazetteer of Connecticut and 
Rhode Island. 1S19. pp. 302, 303, 349, 359, 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 327 

Departing, on the sixth of May, from Port du 
Refuge, the Dauphine sailed on a southeasterly course to 
pass the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. 
Having steered fifty leagues in this direction, Verraz- 
zano found the coast to trend toward the north, which 
he followed until he again cast anchor off the coast of 
Maine, a little north of the forty-third parallel. 

The wary aborigines of this part of the New Land 
would not venture near the Dauphine, nor could they be 
induced to part with their commodities until they were 
remunerated with such thingfs as were most useful to 
them. The landing of twenty-five men from the vessel 
provoked an attack, and yet after this show of hostility 
the Indians fled to the woods. 

Speaking of his departure from Narragansett Bay, 
Verrazzano writes : " Having supplied ourselves with 
every thing necessary, on the sixth of May \old style\y 
w^e departed from the port, and sailed one hundred and 
fifty leagues, keeping close enough to the coast not to 
lose it from our sight. The character of the country 
appeared much the same as before, but the mountains 
were a little higher, and in all appearance rich in 
minerals. 

" We did not stop to land, as the weather was very 
favorable for pursuing our voyage, and the country 
presented no variety. The shore stretched to the east, 
and fifty leagues beyond more to the north, where we 
found a more elevated country, full of very dense woods 
of pine, cypress, and the like, indicative of a cold 
climate. 

** The people were entirely different from the others 
we had seen, whom we had found kind and gentle, but 
these were so rude and barbarous that we were unable, 
by any signs we could make, to hold any communica- 



328 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

tion with them. They clothe themselves with the skins 
of bears, wolves, lynx, marine, and other animals. Their 
food, which we inferred from several visits to their 
dwellings, is obtained by hunting and fishing. They 
have certain vegetables which are roots of spontaneous 
growth. They have no pulse, and we saw no signs of 
its cultivation. The land appears sterile and unfit for 
the growth of fruits or grain of any kind. If we wished 
at any time to traffic with them, they came to the sea- 
shore and stood upon the rocks, from which they low- 
ered down by a cord to our boats beneath whatever 
they had to barter, continually crying out to us not to 
come nearer, and instantly demanding from us that 
which was to be given in exchange. They took from 
us only knives, fish-hooks, and sharpened steel. No 
regard was paid to our courtesies. When we had 
nothine left to exchangee with them, the men at our 
departure made the most brutal signs of disdain and 
contempt possible. Against their will, we penetrated 
two or three leagues into the interior with twenty-five 
men. When we came to the shore, they shot at us 
with their arrows, uttering the most horrible cries, and 
afterward fleeing to the woods. In this region we 
found nothing extraordinary except vast forests, and 
some metalliferous hills as we inferred, for we saw that 
many of the people wore copper ear-rings." 

Following the trend of the coast of Maine, Verraz- 
zano found along this part of his course for the space 
of fifty leagues, numerous islands, thirty-two of which, 
near the main-land, were high and attractive. Among 
them he saw many excellent roadsteads and navigable 
channels. 

Describing his exploration along the coast of Maine, 
Verrazzano remarks : " Departing from this place 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 329 

[perhaps in the vicinity of Cape Neddock], we kept 
along the coast steering to the northeast, and found 
the country more pleasant and open, free from woods, 
and far in the interior we saw lofty mountains, but 
none which extended to the shore. 

** Within fifty leagues we discovered thirty-two 
small and attractive islands, all near the main-land. 
They were so high and so disposed as to afford as fine 
harbors and channels as those that are in the Adriatic 
Gulf, near Illyria and Dalmatia. We had no inter- 
course with the people, but we judge that they were 
similar in disposition and habits to those we were last 
among. 

" After sailing between east and north the distance 
of one hundred and fifty more leagues, and finding our 
provisions and naval stores nearly exhausted, Vvre took 
in wood and water, and determined to return to France, 
having discovered five hundred and two, that is to say, 
seven hundred leagues of new land {avendo discoperto 
leghe ^02 cioeleghe yoo piu di nucva terra)!' 

The distance of seven hundred leagues Verrazzano 
reckoned in the following way, as explained by him in 
his geographical exposition of the voyage : " In addi- 
tion to the 92 degrees we ran toward the west from 
our point of departure before we reached land on the 
thirty-fourth parallel, we have to count 300 [French] 
leagues, which we ran northeastwardly and 400 nearly 
east along the coast before we reached the fiftieth par- 
allel of north latitude." Measured directly north from 
the thirty-fourth parallel to the fiftieth, the space in- 
cludes sixteen degrees, which multiplied by 313^ 
French leagues, which at that time equaled a degree 
of latitude, the product of 5oo French leagues is 
obtained.' Two leagues added to these, for the dis- 

'See note, page 293. 



330 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

tance sailed directly south of the thirty-fourth parallel, 
make 5o2 French leagues, or about eleven hundred 
and four land-miles, the geographical extent of the 
coast explored by Verrazzano/ The New Land 
[Niiova Terra), discovered by Verrazzano, was as early 
as the year i527 delineated on a map of the v/orld 
and denominated Francesca. This Italian name it bore 
for a number of years until the French geographical 
designation La Nouvelle France (New France) was 
substituted for it.' 

Concluding his description of the new country, Ver- 
razzano remarks : " As to the religious faith of all these 
tribes, not understanding their language, we could not 
learn either by signs or gestures any thing certain. It 
seemed to us that they had no religion or laws, nor any 
knowledge of a First Cause or Mover, — that they wor- 
shipped neither the heavens, stars, sun, moon, nor the 
other planets. We could not learn if they v^^ere given 
to any kind of idolatry, or offered any sacrifices or 
supplications, or if they have temples or houses of 

* The distance given by the Spanish historian, Francisco Lopez de Gomara, 
in 1552, from the Point of Baccalaos, in 48' 30' to Cape St. Helen, in 32° north 
latitude, is more than seven hundred and sixty Spanish leagues, measured as 
the coast trended : " From the Point of Baccallaos are set down eight hundred 
and seventy leagues to Florida, counting as follows : From the Point of Baccal- 
laos which is in 48° 30' are seventy leagues of coast to La Baya del Rio, whieh 
is in more than 45°. Thence are seventy to another bay called Isleos which is 
in less than 44°. From Baya Isleos to Rio Fonda are seventy leagues, and 
thence to Rio de las Gamas, are other seventy, both rivers being in 43°. From 
Rio de los Gamas are fifty leagues to Cabo Bajo, and thence to Rio de San An- 
ton, they reckon more than a hundred leagues. From Rio de San Anton are 
eighty leagues along the shore of a gulf to Cabo de Arenas, which is in nearly 
39°, thence to Puerto del Principe are more than a hundred leagues, and from 
it to Rio Jordan seventy, and thence to Cabo de Santa Elena, which is in 32°, 
there are forty leagues. From Santa Elena to Rio Seco, which is in 31°, are 
forty leagues." — La historia general de las Indias. Gomara. cap. xii. 

* The name Francesca is used on the Maiollo map of 1527. Hieronymus 
da Verrazzano called the region " Verrazaiia sen Gallia nova" — ^Verrazana or 
New Gaul. By some French writers it was denominated in the sixteenth cen- 
tury, ' ' Terre Francesque. " 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 331 

prayer in their villages. Our conclusion was that they 
had no religion, but lived without any. This seems to 
be the result of ignorance, for they are very easily per- 
suaded, and imitated us with earnestness and fervor in 
all that they saw us do as Christians in our acts of de- 
votion." 

Verrazzano added to this general description of his 
remarkable discoveries,, an elaborate cosmographical 
explanation of the situation of the New Land. His 
geometrical elucidation of the distances sailed by the 
Dauphine, shows how desirous he was to make plain 
the geography of the vast continent, which he and 
others had partly explored. He says : 

•' It remains for me to place before your serene 
majesty a cosmographical description of the voyage. 
As I have already said, we departed from the desert- 
rocks, lying in the extreme part of the West known to 
the ancients, and in the described meridian near the 
Fortunate Islands, on the thirty-second parallel from 
the equator of our hemisphere, and sailed from it west- 
wardly to where we found the first land, 1,200 leagues 
or 4,800 miles, reckoning according to nautical custom 
four miles to a [marine] league.^ * * •» During 

* " This distance," he remarks, "calculated geometrically upon the ratio 
that three and one seventh times the diameter of a circle is equal to its circum- 
ference, gives 925^*2/3% degrees. For if we take ii4xt degrees as the chord of 
an arc of a great circle, we have by the same ratio gsf f |f degrees as the chord 
of an arc on the parallel of 34°, being that on which we first made land, and 
3^'^TFTS degrees as the circumference of the whole circle, passing through this 
plane. Allowing then, as actual observations show, that 62^ terrestrial miles 
correspond to a celestial degree, we find the whole circumference of SOOj^gyg- 
degrees, as just given, to be 18,759^^^5 n^iles, which, divided by 360, makes the 
length of a degree of longitude on the parallel of 34° to be SS-j'yy^a miles, and 
that is the true measure. Therefore, by a right line to the said rock which 
stands in 32°, we have to calculate the distance, the said 1,200 leagues which 
we have found, from the thirty-fourth parallel, from west to east, hence I 
should have run ()~-f^^.}ii^^ degrees, and this many therefore we have sailed to 
the West, which was not known to the ancients." 

IMIT X 37 == 360. 3°°tV7S X 7 "^ 22 =■ 9SjsSg- SooIeW X 62J = iS.ysgji's- 18,7555^^ 
^ 560 = S25''ij%. 4,Soo by 52/oVi = gzjVsWs- 



332 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

our voyage we had no lunar eclipses or similar celestial 
phenomena. We therefore determined our progress 
from the difference of longitude, which we ascertained 
by various instruments, taking the sun's altitude from 
day to day, and by calculating geometrically the dis- 
tance run by the ship from one horizon to another. 
All these observations, as also the ebb and flow of the 
tide in all places, were noted down in a little book, 
which may prove serviceable to navigators. They 
are communicated to your majesty with the hope of 
promoting science. 

" My intention in this voyage was to reach Cathay, 
on the extreme coast of Asia, expecting, however, to 
find in the newly discovered land some obstacle as I 
found, yet I did not doubt that I should sail by some 
passage to the eastern ocean. It was the opinion of 
the ancients that our eastern ocean of India was an ex- 
panse of water without any intervening land. Aristotle 
supports it by arguments founded on various proba- 
bilities, but it is contrary to later belief and false by 
observation. The discovered country, of which the 
ancients knew nothing, is another world compared with 
that which was before known, being evidently larger 
than our Europe together with Africa, and, perhaps, 
Asia, if one rightly estimate its extent, as shall now 
be explained briefly to your majesty."^ He then 

^ " The Spaniards have sailed south beyond the equator, on a meridian 
2o|f§f J degrees west of the Fortunate Islands to the latitude of 54° and there 
still found land. Turning about they steered northward on the same meridian 
and along the coast to the eighth parallel, and then along the coast more to the 
west, and north to the latitude of 21° [31° ?J, without finding a termination to the 
continent. They estimated the distance run as SglH^T which added to the 
2offtSf ^'■^'^ i'"'^ make lio|*J|f, but this may vary somewhat from the truth. 
We did not make this voyage, and therefore cannot speak from experience. 
We calculated it geometrically from the observations furnished by many naviga- 
tors, who have made the voyage and affirm the distance to be 1600 leagues, due 
allowance being made for the deviations of the sliip from a straight course by 
reason of contrary winds. I hope that we shall now obtain accurate informa- 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 333 

speaks of the Spaniards sailing as far south as the Strait 
of Magellan and as far north as the twenty-first parallel 
without findinor a termination to the continent. * ""' '^" 

O 

" But to return to ourselves : — in the voyage which 
we have made by the order of your majesty, in addi- 
tion to the ninety-two degrees we ran toward the west 
from the point of our departure before we reached land 
on the thirty-fourth parallel, we have to count 300 
leagues which we. sailed northeastwardly, and 400 
nearly east along the coast before we reached the 
fiftieth parallel of north latitude, the point where we 
turned our course from the shore toward home. Be- 
yond this point the Portuguese had sailed as far north 
as the arctic circle without comlnsf to the end of the 
continent. Adding the degrees of south latitude ex- 
plored, which are fifty- four, to those of the north, 
which are sixty-six, the sum Is one hundred and twenty 
decrees, and therefore more than are included in the 
latitude of Africa and Europe, for the north point of 
Norway, the extremity of Europe, is in 71° north 
latitude, and the Cape of Good Hope, the southern 
extremity of Africa, is in 36° south latitude, and their 
sum is only one hundred and six degrees. If the 
breadth of this newly discovered country correspond to 
the extent of its sea-coast, it doubtless exceeds Asia in 
size. In this way we find that the land forms a much 
larger part of our globe than the ancients supposed, 
who maintained, contrary to mathematical reasoning, 
that it was less than the water, whereas actual experi- 
ence proves the reverse, so that judging In respect to 
extent of surface, the land covers apparently as much 
space as the water.' 

tion on these points, by new voyages to be made on the same coasts." — Vide 
MaioUo map of 1527. 

* Verrazzano's argument is based upon the supposition that the extent of the 



334 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

" I hope to point out and explain more clearly and 
satisfactorily the great extent of the New Land or New- 
World, of which I have been speaking. Asia and 
Africa, we know, are joined together and are connected 
with Norway and Russia with Europe, which disproves 
the idea of the ancients that all this northern part had 
been navigated from the promontory of Cimbri [Den- 
mark] eastward as far as the Caspian Sea. They also 
maintained that the whole continent was surrounded 
by two oceans, lying east and west of it, which seas in 
fact do not surround either of the two continents, for as 
we have already seen the land in the western hemi- 
sphere at 54° south latitude extends eastwardly an un- 
known distance, and that the land north of the equator, 
beyond the sixty-sixth parallel, turns to the east and 
does not terminate at the seventieth parallel.^ 

" In a short time, I hope we shall have more satis- 
factory information concerning these things by the aid 
of your serene majesty, whom I pray Almighty God to 
prosper in lasting glory, that we may see the most 
important results of this our geography in the fulfill- 
ment of the holy words of the gospel. 

" On board the ship Dauphine, in the port of Dieppe, 
in Normandy, the 8th day of July, 1524. 

" Your humble servant, * 

" Janus Verazzanus." 

land of the new conlinent was greater than it really was, for at this time the 
Pacific coast of the New Land had not been explored. Verrazzano believed 
that the New World extended much farther westward than it does. 

^ Tierra del Fuego, south of the Strait of Magellan, had not yet been ex- 
plored, and it was not known how far it extended, or in what direction. 



CHAPTER X. 

[Addenda.) 
i524-i526. 

The safe return of Verrazzano to France and his 
remarkable discoveries along the new continent were 
immediately heralded through Europe. The letter 
which he wrote on his arrival at Dieppe was at once 
eagerly copied and the transcripts widely circulated. 
In less than a month's time the news of the navigator's 
extensive explorations was spread over France, and 
became a prominent topic of conversation. The com- 
mercial advantages likely to accrue to France by the 
important discovery of a country thickly populated and 
rich in drugs, furs, and metals were everywhere dis- 
cussed, and Verrazzano's presence at the chief centres 
of trade was much desired that more information 
might be obtained respecting the people and the pro- 
ductions of the New Land. 

A Florentine, named Fernando Carli, a person 
well acquainted with Verrazzano's former voyages, was 
in Lyons at the time when the surprising intelligence 
reached that city. He obtained a copy of Verrazzano's 
letter, and sent it to his father in Florence, inclosed 
in the following communication : 

" In the name of God. 

" August 4, 1624. 
"Honored Father: — 

" Considering that when I was in the army in 

335 



336 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

Barbary, at Gierbe, the news was sent you every day 
by the illustrious gentleman, Don Hugo de Moncada, 
captain-general of his Cesarean majesty in those bar- 
barous parts, what followed contending with the Moors 
of that island, which seemed to have pleased our 
patrons and friends ; and also the congratulatory news 
of the subsequent victory ; [I now send you] the 
news [which] has recently reached this place, of the 
arrival of Captain Giovanni da Verrazzano, our Floren- 
tine, at the port of Dieppe, in Normandy, with his 
ship, the Dauphine, with which he sailed from the 
Canary Islands, the last of January, to go in search of 
new lands for this most serene crown of France, in 
which enterprise he displayed very noble and great 
courage in undertaking such an unknown voyage with 
only one ship, a caravel of hardly tons burden,' with 
only fifty men, with the intention, if possible, to 
discover Cathay, steering a course through climates 
other than those frequented by the Portuguese in going 
to it by the way of Calicut, by keeping more to the 
northwest and north, believing that, although Ptolemy, 
Aristode, and other cosmographers assert that no land 
is to be found toward such climates, he would never- 
theless find land there, which God has permitted him, 
as he distinctly describes in his letter to his serene 
majesty, a copy of which is inclosed in this communi- 
cation. After spending many months in exploring, he 
asserts that he was compelled to return for want of pro- 
visions from that hemisphere into this one, having been 
seven months on the voyage, showing a very great 
and rapid passage, having accomplished a wonderful 
and most extraordinary undertaking in the opinion of 
those who understand the navigation of the globe. 

' The number of tons is not mentioned. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 337 

" At the beginning of the voyage there was an un- 
favorable opinion formed concerning it, many thinking 
that there would be no more news respecting him and 
his vessel, and that he would be lost on that side of 
Norway, in consequence of the great ice which is in 
the northern ocean/ However, the great God, as the 
Moor said, in order to give us every day proofs of his 
infinite power, and to show how admirable is this 
mundane sphere, has disclosed to him a breadth of 
land, as you will perceive, of great extent, as shown 
by good reasoning and by degrees of latitude and 
lonofitude. 

" He declares and shows it to be greater than 
Europe, Africa, and a part of Asia ; therefore a new 
world {ergo mzmdus novus)\ and this exclusive of what 
the Spaniards have discovered in several years in the 
West ; as it is hardly a year since Fernando Magellan 
returned, who discovered a great country with one 
ship out of the five sent on the discovery, from which 
he brought spices much more excellent than the com- 
mon kind, and of his other ships no news has tran- 
spired for five years. They are supposed to be lost.'^ 

" What this our captain has brought he does not 
state in his letter, except a very young boy taken from 
those countries ; but it is supposed he has brought a 
sample of gold, which they do not value in those parts, 
and of drugs and other aromatic liquors, in order to 
confer here with several merchants after he shall have 

^ According to Carli's statement, Verrazzano at first attempted to sail to 
the west by going through the North Sea. Here, as Verrazzano relates, his 
vessels were disabled, and he proceeded southward toward the desert-rock, 
whence he steered toward the west in quest of new lands. 

* Carli evidently was not well informed concerning Magellan's expedition, 
for altliough he speaks of the five ships of the fleet, and of the return of the 
one commanded by Del Cano, he appears to be ignorant of the death of 
Magellan, and of the arrival of Estevan Gomez, in 1521, with the ship San 
Antonio. 



338 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

been in the presence of his most serene majesty. 
And at this hour he should be with the king, and from 
choice should come here soon, as he is much desired, 
in order to be conversed with ; moreover, here he will 
find his majesty, the king, our sire, who is expected in 
three or four days/ And we hope that his serene 
majesty will intrust him with a half dozen good vessels, 
and that he will go on the voyage. If our Francisco 
Carli be returned from Cairo, advise him to go at a 
venture on this voyage with him, for I believe they 
were acquainted at Cairo, where he [Verrazzano] was 
for several years, and not only in Egypt and Syria, 
but almost in all parts of the known world. On ac- 
count of his merits, he is regarded as another Amerigo 
Vespucci, another Magellan, and even more than they. 
We hope that, being provided with other good ships 
and vessels, well-built and properly provisioned, he 
will discover and develop a profitable traffic, and will, 
our Lord God preserving his life, do honor to our 
country in acquiring immortal fame and memory. 
Alderotto Brunelleschi, who started with him, and by 
chance turned back unwilling to accompany him 
farther, will, when he hears this news, be discon- 
tented. ^ 
" Nothing else now occurs to me, as I have ad- 
vised you by others what is necessary. I commend 
myself constantly to you, praying you to impart this 
to our friends, not forgetting Pier Francisco Daga- 
ghiano, who, in consequence of being an experienced 
person, will take much pleasure in it, and commend me 
to him. Likewise to Rustichi, who will not be dis- 

■ King Francis wrote to his parliament, on the second of July, 1524, say- 
ing: " I am going to Lyons to prevent the enemy from entering the kingdom, 
and I can assure you that Charles de Bourbon is not yet in France." — llislorie 
de Fran9ois Premier. Gaillard. Paris, 1769. torn. iii. p. 172. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 339 

pleased, if he delight, as usual, in learning matters of 
cosmography. God guard you from all evil. 

** Your son, 

" Fernando Carli, 

" In Lyons."' 

The notable success attending Verrazzano's voyage 
in 1524, it seems, induced the celebrated navigator to 
undertake another in i526. For the furtherance of 
this project, he and five other persons entered into an 
agreement in which it was stipulated that Philippe 
Chabot, baron of Apremont, knight of the Order of 
the King, governor and lieutenant-general of Bur- 
gundy, admiral of France and of Brittany,^ was to fur- 
nish him with two galleons then at Havre de Grace, 
and a ship belonging to Jean Ango of Dieppe, ^ of sev- 
enty tons burden, and that the admiral was also to equip 
and victual them for the voyage to the New Land. 
The three vessels were to be ready to sail within two 
months.'^ Before setting sail on this voyage, Verraz- 
zano, on Friday, the eleventh of May, i526, gave to 
his brother, Hieronymus, and Zanobus de Rousselay,^ 

^ Lettera di Fernando Carli a suo padre. Archivo storico Italiano ossia 
raccolta di opere e docuraenti fiuora inediti o divenuti rarissimi risguardanti 
la storia d' Italia. Appendice. tomo ix. Firenze. Gio. Pielro Vieusseux, 
diretlore-editore al suo gabinetto scientifico letterario. 1853. 

" Philippe Chabot, Sieur de Brion, admiral of France, was given command 
of the French marine, March 23, 1526. 

^ Ango & Son was a noted firm of ship-builders in Dieppe. 

* Twenty thousand pounds, Tours currency, were to be advanced to meet 
the expenses of the undertaking. The admiral of France contributed four 
thousand pounds, Guillaume Preudhomme, general of Normandy, two thou- 
sand ; Pierre Despinolles, one thousand ; Jean Ango, two thousand ; Jacques 
Boursier, two thousand ; and Verrazzano (Jehan de Varesam, as his name is 
written in the agreement), chief pilot, two thousand pounds. Verrazzano, hav- 
ing agreed to provide competent pilots for the other two vessels, was to receive 
one sixth of all the goods which should be brought back, and one tenth of any 
booty taken at sea from the Moors, or other enemies of France. Foutelte col- 
lection. XXX. 770. fol. 60. Bibliotheque nationale. Paris. 

' Zanobus de Rousselay. a merchant of Rouen, in a legal instrument, dated 



340 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

a power of attorney by which they were empowered to 
act for him in any matter pertaining to his interest ; 
and also, on the following day, a similar instrument to 
Adam Godeffroy of Rouen, which authorized him to 
transact certain business for the navigator.' In each 
of these legal instruments, Verrazzano is named " Jehan 
de Varasenne, nobleman, captain of the ships equipped 
to go on the voyage to the Indies." 

The French sea-captain, Jean Ribaut, in his report 
to Admiral Gaspard de Coligni, of his first voyage to 
Florida, in i562, says that Verrazzano, after his return 
to France, in 1624, " neuer ceassed to make suite vutil 
he was sent thither againe, where at last he died." "" 

The voyage of i526 was the third made by Ver- 
razzano to America : the first in i5o8, with Thomas 
Aubert ; the second, in i524, in the Dauphine. This 
fact is corroborated by the well-informed English col- 
lector, Hakluyt, who says that he " had been thrise on 
that coast." ^ 

Of Verrazzano's death, Ramusio gives this account : 
"In the last voyage which he made, having gone on 
"land with some of his men, he and they were all put 
to death by the inhabitants, and in the presence of 
those who were on board the ship were roasted and 
devoured. Such was the terrible death of this valiant 
gentleman, who, had not this misfortune happened 
him, would, by the great knowledge and experience 
which he had of maritime affairs and of navigation, 

September 30, 1526, gave bonds that " Messire Jehan de Veirassane " was en- 
titled " to defend a certain clametir de karo, obtained against him by Guillaume 
Eynoult, called Cornete, living in Dieppe." The bonds were placed in the 
hands of Fremyn Poree and Robert Tassel, sergeant royal, at Rouen, until the 
matter could be legally settled. MS. in archives of Rouen. 

* Foutette collection. xxx. 770. fol. 60. Bibliotheque nationale. 
Paris. 

' Ilakluyt's Divers voyages, 1582. 

' " Epistle dedicalorie " to Divers voyages. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 341 

attended and favored by the large liberality of King 
Francis, have discovered and made known to the 
world, all that part of the earth up to the north pole, 
and would not have been contented with only the ex- 
ploration of the coast, but would have attempted to 
penetrate far inland, and as far as he could go. 

" Many who had known and conversed with him, 
have told me that he had declared that it was his 
intention to persuade the most Christian king to send 
from these parts a goodly number of people to settle 
in some places of the new country which are of a tem- 
perate climate and very fertile soil, with very beautiful 
rivers and harbors capable of holding any fleet. 

** Settlers in these places would be the means of 
effecting many good results, and among others that of 
bringing those barbarous and ignorant tribes to know 
God and our most holy religion, showing them how to 
cultivate the land, transporting some of the animals of 
Europe to those vast plains ; and finally, in time, dis- 
covering the inland parts, and seeing whether or not 
among the many islands in that part of the world any 
passage to the South Sea exists, or that the West 
Indies extend as far north as the pole. 

"This and so much has been related respecting the 
achievements and efforts of this brave gentleman, and 
in order that his memory may not be buried and his 
name pass into oblivion, we have desired to give to 
the light the little information that has come into our 
hands." "■ 

Hakluyt, speaking of the map which Verrazzano 
had made and presented to King Henry VIIL of 
England, which as late as the year i584 was still pre- 
served by an English cartographer, says : " There is a 

' Raccolta di navigationi e viaggi, Ramusio. Discorso sopra la ntiova 
Francia. vol. iii. fol. 438. 



342 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

mighty large olde mappe in parchemente, made as yt 
shoulde seeme, by Verarsanus, traced all alonge the 
coaste, from Florida to Cape Briton, with many Italian 
names, which laieth cute the sea, makinge a little necke 
of land in 40 degrees of latitude much like the streyte 
necke or istmus of Dariena." The English collector 
also refers to a globe which he believed Verrazzano 
made : " There is an old excellent globe in the Queens 
privie gallery at Westminster, which also semeth to be 
of Verarsanus makinge, having the coaste in Italian, 
which laieth oute the very same straite necke of lande 
in the latitude of 40 degrees, with the sea joyninge 
harde on bothe sides, as it dothe on Panama and 
Nombre di Dios ; which were a matter of sincrular 
importance, yf it shoulde be true, as it is not unlikely." ^ 

Although the *' mighty large olde mappe in parche- 
mente " of Verrazzano's drafting is lost, there are sev- 
eral maps extant which seemingly represent the terri- 
tory of North America as it was delineated by him. 
The rarest and the most valuable of these is a vellum- 
map of the world in the Ambrosian Library at Milan, 
made in i527. It is five feet seven inches long and 
one foot eleven inches wide, and bears this inscription : 
" Vescoiite de Maiollo conposiiy hanc car tan. In yanua 
anno dny, J^S^y, die xx. decenbrisJ' (Visconte dd 
Maiollo composed this chart, in Genoa, in the year 
of the Lord, i527, the twentieth day of December). 
The narrow isthmus, near the fortieth parallel, and 
the " number of Italian names" from " Tera Florida" 
to "C. de Bertoni " on this map, fully agree with 
Hakluyt's description of Verrazzano's chart.^ 

Hieronymus, the brother of the navigator, it seems, 

' Hakluyt's Particular discourse, 1584. 

' In the cover-pocket is a copy of the part of the Maiollo map representing 
the continent in the western hemisphere. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 343 

also made a map of the New Land, which, It is conjec- 
tured, he drafted in 1529/ The original is a plani- 
sphere delineated on parchment, fifty-one by one hun- 
dred and two inches. This map is in the Borgian 
museum in Rome. The inscription : " Hieronimus de 
Verrazanus faciebat" (Hieronimus de Verrazano made 
it), permits the inference that the map was not the one 
which Hakluyt described, for had Hieronymus da 
Verrazzano's name been inscribed on it, the Enelish 
collector, it seems, would have mentioned the fact. 
The representation of the so-called Western Sea, or 
" Mare Indicum " (the Chesapeake Bay), with the ex- 
planatory inscription on Hieronymus da Verazzano's 
map, indicates that he had some knowledge of the 
cartographic features of his brother's c^art, and of the 
geographical memoranda recorded in the little book 
which the latter speaks of in his letter to King Francis 
I., and which he thought would be serviceable to other 
navio^ators.^ 

' The inscription on the chart contains this information : " Verrazana seu 
Gallia nova quale discopri 5 amii fa Giovanni di Verrazzano fiorentino per 
ordine et comandameto del Chrysiiattnissiino Re di Francia " (Verrazana or New 
Gaul, which Giovanni di Verrazano, a Florentine, discovered five years ago, by 
the order and commandment of tlie most Christian king of France). 

^ The value of the map made by Hieronymus da Verrazzano is fully dis- 
cussed in Notes on Giovanni da Verrazano, and on a planisphere of 1529 illus- 
trating his American voyage in 1524, with a reduced copy of the map, by 
James Carson Brevoort. New York, 1874. 

Vide Voyage of Verrazzano : A chapter in the early history of maritime 
discovery in America. By Henry C. Murphy. New York, 1S73. 

Vide Verrazano, the Explorer : being a vindication of his letter and voyage, 
with an examination of the map of Hieronimo da Verrazano and a dissertation 
upon the globe of Vlpius. By B. F. De Costa. New York, iS8o. 



CHAPTER XL 

[Addenda.) 
1526-1614. 

After the death of Verrazzano, the French, for a 
time, made no attempt to search along the coast of the 
new continent for a short and chrect way to Cathay. 
The losses sustained by the projectors of the expedi- 
tion of 1 526, Ribaut says, gave "small courage to 
sende thither agayne, and was the cause that this laud- 
able enterprise was left of, vntill the yeere 1534, at 
which time his Maiestie [Francis I.] (desiring alwayes 
to enlarge his kingdome, countreys, and dominions, 
and the aduauncing the ease of his subiectes), sent 
thither a Pilote of S. Mallowes, a Briton, named James 
Cartier, well seene in the art and knowledge of Nauiga- 
tion, and especially of the North parts, commonly called 
the new land, led by some hope to find passage that 
waies to the south seas." ' 

The two ships commanded by Cartier sailed from 
the port of St. Malo, on the twentieth of April, 1534. 

' The true and last discouerie of Florida made by Captain John Ribaiilt in 
the 3'eere 1562. Dedicated to a great noble man of Fraunce, and translated 
into Englishe by one Thomas Hackit. Hakluyt's Divers voyages. 1582. 

Tiie whole and true discoverye of Terra Florida (Englished, the Florishing 
Land) conleyning as well the wonderful straunge Natures and Maners of the 
People, with the mervylous Commodities and Treasures of the Country ; as 
also the pleasaunt Fortes and Havens, and Wayes thereunto never found out 
before the last year, 1562. Written in French by Captain Ribauld, the fyrst 
that whollye discovered the same, and now newly set forthe in Englishe, the 
XXX. of May, 1563. 

344 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 345 

Reaching Newfoundland on the tenth of May, Cartier 
began to search for a navigable channel to India. 
Three months were passed in exploring the coast of 
Labrador and the Strait of Belle Isle and a part of the 
Gulf of St. Lawrence. On the fifteenth of August, 
Cartier set sail for France, and arrived in the port of 
St. Malo, on the fifth of September. In the following 
year, Cartier sailed again to New France and explored 
the St. Lawrence River to the island of Hochelaga, the 
site of the city of Montreal. It is said that he was 
told by the natives that from there it was only " a 
month's sailing to go to a land where cinnamon and 
cloves are gathered."^ Returning from this voyage, 
Cartier reached St. Malo on the sixth of July, 1536.'' 

The first explorers of the new continent called its 
inhabitants by different names. Columbus and his 
Spanish companions, imagining the field of their dis- 
coveries to be in Eastern Asia, named the aborigines 
Indians (Indios), believing them to be natives of India. 
Seven of the people of Canada, carried to France, in 
1 5o9, were described by a contemporaneous Latin writer 
as wood or wild men {Jioinines sylvestres)? The French, 
it appears, called the natives of New France manants 
or fnananSy and paysans, peasants, the former name 
being used in the middle ages as a designation for un- 
intelligent people or those of low condition. The 
name manants was likewise a designation for persons 
of this class living in villages and on farms. Manants 

* Voyages. Hakluyt. vol. iii. p. 232. 

^ Brief recit, and succinate narration de la nauigation faicte es ysles de 
Canada, Hochelage, and Saguenay & autres, auec particulieres meurs, lan- 
gaige & cerimonies des habitans d' icelles : fort delectable a veoir. Auec priui- 
lege. On les uend h. Paris au second pillier en la grand salle du Palais, & en 
la rue neufue Nostre dame a 1' enseigne de lescu de Frace, par Ponce Roffet 
diet Fancliuer & Anthoine le Clerc freres. 1545. 

* " Septem hoies syluestres ex ea isula {que ieiTa noua dicit) RotJiomagu ad- 
duciisuni." — Eusebii Caesariensis episcopi chronicon. Paris. 1512. p. 172. 



346 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

properly speaking were the natives of a place, and the 
hahitans were those who came to it to reside.' The 
French appellation nituianis or vianaiis not only fitly 
expressed the low condition of the natives of New 
France, but it also gave prominence to the fact that 
they dwelt in villages and were indigenous people. 
The French, as late as the year 1677, called the old 
Indians, or rather the descendants of the Senecas, 
paisaiis, peasants.^ The Italians also called the natives 
of North America peasants, /^^j-^^/^z.^ 

The Manants living on the island on which the city 
of New York is built, were very friendly to the French 
who came to the Grande River, in the sixteenth 
century, to traffic for furs. The Hollanders, however, 
found them to be quite hostile in the following century. 
De Laet, the Dutch historian, describing the natives of 
the Groote River in 1625, remarks : " On the east side, 
upon the main-land, dwell the Manhattans, a bad race 
of savages, who have always been very obstinate and 

^ *^ Manatit, s. j?i. Paysan habitant en un village on en tine metairie a la 
campagne. Indigena,incola riisticiis. * * * O^t appelle proprement inanans, 
ceux qui sont originaires du lieu ; iSr' habitans, ceux qui y sontvenus demeurer." 
— Dictionnaire Trevoux. Nancy, 1740. 

^^ Manant (ina-nafi), s. m. 1° Terme d^ ancienne pratique. Habitant d^ un 
bourg ou d' tin village. * * * 2° Absolument, dans le langage ordinaire, niais 
archaique, tin paysan. * * * '^° Atijourd' hui, par extension, homme grassier, 
mal dleve.'" — Dictionnaire de la langue Francaise. Par E. Littre, de 1' acade- 
mic Francaise. Paris, 1S74. 

" " The French call the Maques, les Aniuez, the Oneydes, les Onoyants, 
the Onondagas, les Montagneurs, * * * the Caiougas, les Petuneurs, the 
Senegues, les Paisans." — Observations of Wenworth Greenhalgh in a journey 
from Albany to ye Indyans westward. 1677. London documents in the office 
of the Secretary of State, Albany, N. Y. vol. iii. p. 167, 

' " This region is called by the peasants {paesani) Norumbega." — 
Raccolta di navigationi e viaggi. Ramusio. vol. iii. fol. 353, 

" Quando per sua buona tientura intese da paesani, che erano giunto alia 
marina alcuni nauiglia." " Here by good luck he heard from the natives that 
some boats had arrived off the coast." — Dello Scoprimento dell' Isole Frislanda, 
Eslanda, Engronelanda, Estotilanda, & Icaria, fatto per due fratelli Zeni. — 
Vide Voyages of the Venetian brothers. Major, p. 24. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 347 

unfriendly toward our countrymen." ' He also says 
that Hudson, in 1609, called the Great River " Man- 
hattes from the name of the people who dwelt at its 
mouth." ^ 

The wrong spelling of the French term manant 
began with a misconception of its proper pronuncia- 
tion. The Dutch thinking that the t was sounded, 
pronounced the name man-ant, whence " manhat^' 
" 7nan-atk," " man-ad," and other strange forms of the 
name. Wassenaer, the Dutch historian, in 1624, 
speaking of the Indian tribes of New Netherland, 
says : " The Manhates are situated at the mouth " of 
the Mauritius River.^ De Laet writes the name Man- 
hattes, Manatthans, Manatthanes, and Manhattans.-* 
De Vries, the Dutch navigator, who could speak 
French, spells the appellation Menates and Minates.^ 
In the deposition of Catelyn Trico, a French woman, 
who emigrated from Holland, in 1624, to New Nether- 
land, the term is written Mannantans.^ Besides these 

^ Nieuwe Wereldt. Door Johannes de Laet. Tot Leyden. 1625. boek. 
iii. cap. ix. 

- Novus Orbis, seu descriptionis Indiae Occidentalis, autore Joanne de 
Laet. Antuerpiensi, 1633. lib. iii. capk vii. 

When the island in 1625 was purchased from the Manants by the agents 
of the Dutch West India Company, the transaction is spoken of in a letter 
addressed to their high mightinesses, the Lords States General of the 
United Netherlands, as follows: "Our people have bought the island Man- 
hattes from the Wilden (wild men) for the value of sixty guilders [about 
twenty-four dollars]." — Holland documents, in the office of the Secretary of 
State, Albany, N. Y. vol. i. p. 155. 

^ HistorischeVerhaeldoor Nicolaes a Wassenaer. Amsterdam. 1621-1632. 
deel vi. fol. 144. 

* Nieuwe Wereldt. boeck. iii. cap. ix. Novus Orbis. lib. iii. cap. ix. 

^ Korte hislorial ende journals. Door David Pietersz. de Vries. Hoorn, 
1655. pp. 146, 151. 

^ New York Colonial MSS. xxxv. 

Samuel de Champlain, the French explorer, describing in 1632 the coast of 
America in the vicinity of St. John's River, New Brunswick, writes : "I was at 
four islands near the river St. John. * * * Farther west there are other islands, 
one of which extends six leagues, which is called by the savages, Mena»e." 



348 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

peculiar changes the name has many other anomalous 
forms.* 

When the first French explorers sailed along that 
massive bulwark of trap-rock, now called The Pali- 
sades, rising on the west side of the Grande River to 
varying altitudes from two to five hundred feet above 
the level of the stream, and ranging northward and 
southward a distance of more than ten miles, they were 
peculiarly impressed with its grandeur, and figuratively 
called it L' Anormee Berge, (The Grand Scarp.) 

The adjective anormee and the noun berge definitely 
describe the steep and extensive wall of stone which 
borders the noble river, now bearing the name of a 
later explorer. Anorme, an obsolete form of the ad- 
jective enorme, signifies that which is grand, vast, 
majestic." The noun berge, besides meaning an 
elevated border of a river, a scarp of a fortification, a 
steep side of a moat or of a road, is a designation for 
certain rocks elevated perpendicularly above the 

Opposite this word, Champlain writes on the marginal space, " L'isle de Man- 
tha7ie" adding a ^and an h to the second syllable of the words. — Les voyages 
de la Nouvelle France occidentale, dicte Canada, faits par le Sr. de Champlain, 
Sanctongeois. Paris, 1632. chap. ii. p. 58. 

* In different historical works and documents the following modes of 
spelling the word appear : Manatans, Manates, Manate, Manath, Manathans, 
Manathe, Manathes, Manatte, Manetto, Menates, Minates, Manhates, Man- 
hatas, Manna-hatta, Manhattes, jVIanahattes, Manahatta, Mahates, Manahatas, 
Manahatans, Manahata, Manhatens, Manhathans, Manhatoes, Manhatoos, 
Manhatos, Manhattans, Manhatten, Manhattoes, Manhattons, Manhattos, 
Manhuttons, Manahactas, Manchatas, Manades, Manadoes, Manados, Menade, 
Monhatous, Munhaddon, and Manhattan. — Vide General index to documents 
relating to the colonial history of the State of New York. 

' " AnormS, /e, &" anormal, adj. Ces viots ne sontplits en usage. Borel dit 
qtCils signifient qui est contre la rdgle commune, 6^ qn^ dno7-me vient de ces 
mots. * * * Knorme, adj. m &" f. Prodigieux, ixcessif. Immanis, inwien- 
sus." — Dictionnaire Trevoux. 

" Par extension de la signification moj-ale a la signification physique, ex- 
traordinaire par sa grosseur ou par sa grandeur. Un dnorme bloc de 
granit. * * * Rem. Quand inorme signifie excessif en grandeur ou en 
grosseur, il se met avant on aprh son substantif." — Dictionnaire de la langue 
Fran^aise. Littre. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 349 

water/ In an old French lexicon it is said : " They 
likewise call in marine phraseology bh^ges or barges 
those great rocks, rugged and perpendicularly elevated, 
that is to say, uprightly and plumb, as the berges or 
barges of Olone : such rocks as are Scylla and Charyb- 
dis, toward Messina." ^ 

A more appropriate name could not have been se- 
lected to designate geographically this part of New 
France than that of The Land of the Grand Scarp {La 
Terre cC Anormee Berge), or, in more familiar phrase- 
ology. The Land of the Palisades. The words, scarp 
and paHsade, are terms of fortification. The first des- 
ignates the steep slope below the parapet of a fortifica- 
tion, next to the ditch ; the second an upright row of 
strong stakes set firmly in the ground in front of the 
counter-scarp, on the opposite side of the moat from 
the scarp. 

The mispronunciation of the peculiar geographical 
name was evidently the cause of its orthography being 
obscured so soon after it was used as the designation 
for the elevated border of the Grande River. The more 
frequent use thereafter of enorme for anorine made the 
term more unfamiliar. It would seem also that when 
the name should have been written La Terre (T Enorme 
Berge, that it was inscribed. La Terre de JVormeberge. 

^ " Berge {be?'-/), s. f. i°. Bord relevi, escarpi, dhtne riviere, a'u7t fossi, 
d" tin chemin. 2°. Terme de ?narine. Certains rockers elevh h pic stir 
r eau * * * 

''' Etym. Espagn. et ital. barga, Diez ne veut pas qiC il soit d' origine 
germanique, et il en rapproche le kytnri bargodi, surplomber, bargod, bord. 
Cependant le bas-lalin berga, garde, defense {<jid vient de V allemand bergen, 
defendre, protege)-), ji aitrait-il pas pu donner, par une serie de sens, defense, 
fortification, meule, et finalemejit bord escarpd?" — Dictionnaire de la langue 
Fran^aise. Little. 

* " On appelle aussi en terme de Mer, bhges, ou barges, les grands rochers, 
dpres (St' rilevez a pic ; c'est-a-dire, droitement df a plomb, covime les berges 'ou 
barges d' Olone ; telles sont Sylla Sif Cajybde vers Messiite" — Dictionnaire 
Trevoux. 



3^o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

The change of the quahfying term to a word of two 
syllables, as iiorom, noriim, nurum, and norim, ren- 
dered the name more ambiguous. In like manner the 
noun berge was corrupted, being spelled be7gue, hega, 
berg, and bagra. In this way the territorial designation 
became La Terre de Norumbega, La Tcrre de Norcm- 
bcgue, La Tein^e de Norombeige, and La Terre de Norcm- 
bergue, and its meaning and derivation incomprehensi- 
ble to the descendants of its originators. 

Gerard Mercator, on a terrestrial globe, [globus 
terrae), made in 1 541, represents the Grande River as if 
its channel were filled with anormee beiges, which he 
designates with the misspelled narhe " Anorum.bega." ' 
On a map of the world, made about the year 1548, for 
King Henry II. of France, the appellation " Anoro- 
bagra" designates the river of the Grand Scarp. "" 

In the sixteenth century proper names less peculiar 
in construction than the appellation L' Anormee Berge, 
were written very irregularly. It is said by Disraeli 
that Leicester subscribed his name eight different 
ways, and that Villers is spelled fourteen times differ- 
ently in the deeds of the family. Lower mentions 
that the name of Malnwaring, has the remarkable num- 
ber of one hundred and thirty-one variations in differ- 

'Gerard Mercator was born at Rupelmonde, in East Flanders, on the fifth 
of "March, 1512. Mercator is the Latinized form of his German name, Krevier, 
a tradesman, merchant. After studying at Bois-le-Duc, in Brabant, he entered 
the university of Louvain. lie selected for his profession the manufacture of 
mathematical instruments and the art of drawing and engraving. His carto- 
graphic fame began wilh the engraving of a map of Palestine, in 1537. Next 
followed a map of Flanders, in 1540. Then in 1541, a large terrestrial globe, 
•which he dedicated to the '' lllusUiss Djio Nicolao Pcrreuoto, Domino a Granu- 
ella" ; the original drawings of which are preserved in the Royal library of 
Belgium, in Brussels. In 1552, Mercator removed from Louvain to Duisburg, 
where, in 1569, he made his famous map of the world. He died in December, 

1594. 

^ The original map is now in the possession of the count of Crawford and 

Balcarres, Scotland. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 351 

ent documents. Even in this age of dictionaries the 
spelling of uncommon geographical names does not 
always conform to their orthography. A record has 
been kept for a number of years of the different ways 
in which the name of the city of Cohoes, in the state 
of New York, has been spelled on letters addressed to 
that post-office, and the extraordinary number of one 
hundred and ninety- seven changes in the form of the 
appellation has been registered. 

There seems to be but a sino^le statement that mieht 
be used to support an assertion that the natives of the 
country of New France originated the name " Norum- 
bega." It is in Ramusio's Italian translation of the 
French sea-captain's description of Francesca, in which 
it is said: " This region is called by the peasants Nor- 
umbega." Rene Goulaine de Laudonniere, a well- 
informed French naval officer, who had command of a 
French fort in Florida, in i564, contradicts the asser- 
tion that the name was transferred from an early map 
of the eastern coast of Asia, saying: " It is called by the 
moderns Terre de Norumberge." Andre Thevet, the 
French geographer, who sailed along its coast in i556, 
declares that his countrymen called the Grande River 
" Norombegue," and the Indians, " Aggoncy." 

One of the earliest accounts of the Land of the 
Grand Scarp extant is in the discourse of the unnamed 
sea-captain of Dieppe, written in 1539. Describing 
the country of Francesca, he says : " Beyond Cape 
Breton there is a region contiguous to this cape, the 
coast of which extends west and a quarter southwest 
as far as the region of Florida, and it stretches full 
five hundred leagues, v/hich coast was discovered 
fifteen years ago, by Monsieur Giovanni da Verrazzano, 
in the name of King Francis and of Madame, the 



352 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

regent, and this region is called by many the land of 
the French {la Francese), and likewise by the Portu- 
guese, and its termination toward Florida is in 78° west 
longitude and 30° north latitude,' 

'• The inhabitants of this domain are a tractable 
people, amiable and agreeable. The country abounds 
v/ith all kinds of fruit. Oranges and almonds grow in 
wild forests, with many different varieties of odoriferous 
trees. This region is called by the peasants [paesani) 
Norumbega, and between it and Brazil there is a large 
gulf, extending west as far as the ninety-second merid- 
lan. ^ 

In 1540 Jacques Cartier again sailed to New 
France and ascended the St. Lawrence River. Jean 
Francois de la Roque, Sieur de Roberval, was placed 
in command of this expedition, and, by letters-patent, 
dated January i5, 1640, was commissioned viceroy 
and lieutenant-o-eneral of the new lands belonofine to 
France in the western hemisphere. Jean Alphonse, 
an experienced navigator, a native of Saintonge, near 
the town of Cognac, France, accompanied Sieur de 
Roberval as chief pilot.^ 

In the manuscript of the cosmography of Raulin 
Secalart, written about the year i545, preserved in the 

' The edict of Francis I., appointing his mother, Louise of Savoy, regent, 
is dated October, 17, 1524, but before tliis time she had virtually assumed in 
part the direction of tlie government, 

"^ The large gulf is that which is now called the Gulf of Mexico. 

" A discourse of a great French sea-captain of the town of Dieppe concerning 
the voyages made to the New World of the West Indies called New France, 
from the fortieth to the forty-seventh parallel under the arctic pole, and con- 
cerning the country of Brazil, Guinea, Isle of St. Lawrence and that of Suma- 
tra as far as the French caravels and ships have sailed." — Discorso d' vn gran 
capitano di mare Francese del Lvogno di Dieppa. Raccolta di navigationi et 
viaggi. Ramusio, vol. iii. fol. 353. 

' Les voyages auantureaux dv capitaine Ian Alfonce, Sainctongeois. Auec 
Priuilege du Roy, A Poitiers, au Pelican par Ian de Marnef, 

Jean Alphonse died about the year 154S. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 353 

National library, in Paris, is a short description of the 
coast and people of La Terre d' Anormee Bero-e/ 
The writer, evidently Jean Alphonse, very faithfully 
describes Long Island Sound, the eastern entrance to 
the Grande River, when he says : " This river is wider 
than forty leagues of latitude at its mouth, and within, 
the width is as much as thirty or forty leagues, and it 
is full of islands, which extend ten or twelve leagues in 
the sea, and it is very dangerous on account of rocks 
and swashings." These observations are remarkably 
consonant with those of a later writer : " Long Island 
Sound, a Mediterranean Sea, separating the island 
from the main-land of Connecticut, is connected with 
the ocean at each end of the island and affords a shel- 
tered line of navigation of about one hundred and 
twenty miles in extent. *^ * * Opposite Harlem 
River is the noted pass or strait called Hell-Gate, 
which is crooked, and from the numerous rocks, islands, 
eddies, and currents, is somewhat difficult and daneer- 
dus." ^ 

The identity of the river called by the French 
writer " Norombegue," now the Hudson, is satisfactor- 
ily established by the statement that the water of the 
river is salty to the height of forty leagues or eighty- 
eight miles. This fact is incontrovertible. The 
Hudson is salty or brackish beyond the city of Pouo-h- 
keepsie, which is about ninety-three miles north of 
Sand Hook.3 The assertion could not be verified 

' The two first leaves of the manuscript are lost and with them the title of 
the work. Inasmuch as the subject of ihe work is defined in what may be said 
is the preface, and as the manuscript at the beginning and at the end bears the 
names of " Jehan Allefonsce " and " Raulin Secalart, cosemographe de Honne- 
fleur, 1545," the title of the work may be reconstructed and written : Cosmogra- 
phie de Jehan Allefonsce et Raulin Secalart. 1545. The manuscript is a folio of 
one hundred and ninety-four leaves. It is designated MS. No. 676. 

^ Histoiy of Long Island by Benjamin F. Thompson. 1843. p. 26, 
^ The tide flows up the Hudson as far as the city of Troy, about one hundred 
and seventy-four miles from the ocean. 



354 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

were it assumed that the description applies to the 
Penobscot, or the Kennebec, or the Merrimack, or the 
Connecticut River. It would seem that the writer 
speaks of the Palisades bordering the west side of the 
river, opposite the Indian village of " Norombegue," 
when he says : " On the side toward the west of the 
said town there are many rocks which extend to the 
sea, about fifteen miles." 

" I say that the Cape of St. John, called Cape Bre- 
ton, and the Cape of the Franciscan, are northeast and 
southwest, and range a point from an east and west 
course, and there are one hundred and forty leagues 
on the course, and which makes one cape, called the 
Cape of Norombegue. The said cape is in forty-one 
degrees of the height of the arctic pole. The said 
coast [/. e. of Connecticut] is all sandy, * * ^' ' fiat, 

* An undeciphered word in the manuscript. 

" Je ditz que le cap de Saint J than, diet Cap a Breton, et le cap de la Fi-an- 
ciscane, sont nord-est et sud-oucst et pi-cnneiit iin quart de est a oiiest, et y a en 
la route cent quarante licues et icy faict ung cap appcle le cap de N^orornbegtie. 
Le diet cap est par quarante et ting dcgrcz de la haulteur du polle artique. La 
dicte caste est iouie sableuse * * * basse, sans nulle viontaigne. Et au long 
laquelle coste y a plusieurs isles de sable et coste fort dangereuse de bancs et rochiers, 

" Les gens de ceste coste et de Cap h Breton sont maulvaiscs gens, puissa7is, 
grandz Jlcschicrs, et sont gens qui vivent de poissons et de chair, et out aulc'^n 
motz et parlcnt quasi le inesme langaige de ceux de Canada et sont grajid peuple. 
Et ceux de Cap a Breton vont donner la guerre a ceulx de la Terre j:cufve quand 
ils peschent et pour nulle chose ne saulveroycnt la vie a ung hojume quand ils lif 
prennent, si iiest jeune enfant on jeune file et sont si crucls que si prcnnent 
ung homme poriant barbe, ilz luy couppcnt les mcvtbrcs et Ics portent a leurs 
femmes et enffans, affui d' estre vengez en cela. Et y a entre eux force pelleier- 
ies de toustes bestes. 

" Audela dii cap de K'orombigiie descend la riviere dudict Koromblgue, 
environ vingt et cinq lieucs du cap. La dicte riviere est large de plus de 
quarante lieues de latitude en son entrtfe et ceste largeur au dedans bicn irentc on 
quarante lieues et est ioute pleine d' isles qui entnnt bieii dix ou douze licues en 
la mer et est fort dangereuse de rochers et baptures. La dicte riviere est par 
quarante et deux degrcz de la haultettr du polle artique. 

' ' A udedans de la dicte riviere quinze lieues y a une ville qui s' appelle Ko- 
rombhgue et y a en el'e de bonnes gens et y a force pelleterics de toutes bestes. Les 
gens de la ville sont vestuz de pelleterics, portans manteatilx de martres. fe me 
double que la dicte rivihre va entrer en la rivikre de Hochelaga, car elle est sallc'e 



mr* ''^x\ N 











Ph 



o 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 355 

without any mountain. And along this coast there are 
many isles of sand and the coast very dangerous on 
account of banks and rocks. 

" The people of this coast and of Cape Breton are 
an ill-disposed race, powerful, great arrow-makers, and 
live on fish and on flesh, and are not talkative, and 
speak almost the same language as those of Canada, 
and are a great people. And those of Cape Breton go 
to make war upon those of the New Land when they 
are fishing, and not for any thing do they spare the life 
of any one when they take him, unless it is a young 
boy or a young girl ; and they are so cruel that if they 
take a man having a beard, they cut off his legs and 
arms and carry them to their wives and children, in 
order to be avenged in that way. And there are among 
them many peltries of all animals. 

" Beyond the Cape of Norombegue, the river of the 
said Norombegue descends about twenty-five leagues 
from the cape. The said river is wider than forty 
leagues of latitude at its mouth [entrance of Long 
Island Sound], and within, this width is as much as 
thirty or forty leagues, and it is full oi isles which 
stretch out ten or twelve leagues in the sea [or Sound], 
and it is very dangerous on account of rocks and 
swashings. The said river is in forty-two degrees of 
the height of the arctic pole. 

" Up the said river, fifteen leagues, there is a town 
which is called Norombegue, and there is in it a good 

plus de qtiarante lietics en dedans selon la diet des gens de la ville, Les gens 
parlent beaucoiip de motz qui approuchent du latin et adorent le soldi et soni belles 
getis et grandz hommes. La terre de Norombegue est katilte et bonne. 

" Enavant et audefa de la dicte riviere cent cinqiiante lieues y a une isle qui 
j' appelle la Vermondc qui est par les trente et trois degrez de la haullenr du polle 
artique, Et du couste devers louest de la dicte ville, y a forces rochiers qui s' avan- 
cent dans la mer hien quinze lieues, et du coste vers le nort y a une anse en laquelle 
y a une petite isle laquelle est fort subjecte a tempester et n' y pent habiter " — 
Cosmographie de Jehan Allefonsce et Raiilin Secarlart. J545 fol. 184-189. 



356 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

people, and they have many peltries of all kinds of 
animals. The inhabitants of the town are dressed in 
skins, wearing mantles of martens. I think that the 
said river runs into the river Hochelaga [the St. Law- 
rence], for it is salt for more than forty leagues up, 
according to the statement of the people of the town. 
The people use many words which resemble the Latin, 
and they worship the sun, and are a handsome people, 
and large framed. The land of Norombegue is high 
and good. 

" Before and on this side of the said river, one 
hundred and fifty leagues, there is an island called 
Vermonde [Bermuda ?] which is in about thirty-three 
degrees of the height of the arctic pole.' And on the 
west side of the said town there are many rocks which 
extend to the sea, about fifteen leagues, and north of 
it there is a bay, in which there is a small island, which 
is often subject to tempests and cannot be inhabited." 

While Jean Alphonse was exploring the coast of 
La Terre d' Anormee Berge (which at this time geo- 
graphically included all the country between the Grande 
River and the Gulf of St. Lawrence), he ascended the 
Grande River to the height of its navigation, from 
which point he inferred that the stream extended to 
the St. Lawrence, as it is represented on the ma|) 
made by Giacomo de Gastaldi, a Piedmontese cartog- 
rapher, about the year i553." " I have been at a 
bay as far as forty-two degrees, between Norumbega 

* The Bermudas or Somers's islands lie between 32'' 14' and 32° 25' north 
latitude, and 64" 38' and 64° 52' west longitude. In 1522, Juan Bermudez, a 
Spaniard, while on a voyage from Spain to Cuba, was wrecked on them. In 
1609 Sir Geor,ge Somers, sailing to Virginia, met with a similar misfortune 
among them. They are said to number three hundred and sixty-five, and are 
formed by coral reefs. The principal islands are Bermuda or Long Island, St. 
George's, Ireland, Somerset, and St. David's Island. 

' The map is contained in the third volume of Ramusio's Raccolta di navi- 
gation! e viaggi. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 357 

and Florida, and I have not searched the end thereof, 
and I know not whether it [the river] pass through; 

* * ''^' I doubt not but [the river] Norumbega en- 
tereth into the river of Canada, and unto the sea of 
Saguenay." ^ 

This opinion, that the Hudson was an outlet of the 
St. Lawrence, was held by the Dutch as late as the 
year 1625, for De Laet observes : "Judging from ap- 
pearances this river extends to the great river of St. 
Lawrence, or Canada, since our skippers assure us 
that the natives come to the fort [on the site of Al- 
bany] from that river." ^ 

Ren6 Goulaine de Laudonniere, a French officer, 
commanding Fort Caroline, on the river May, in 1664., 
gives, in his notable history of Florida, a short account 
of Verrazanno's discoveries in 1524.3 He says that 
the French planted in the New Land " the ensigns and 
arms of the king of France, so that the Spaniards 
themselves, who were there afterward, have called this 
country French land {itome ce pais terre Francesque). 

* * * The east part of it is named by the moderns 
Terre de Norumberge, which ends at the Gulf of Ca- 
mas, which separates it from the island of Canada.""* 

Not long after the discovery of Francesca by Ver- 
razzano, French barques were making voyages to its 

* Voyages. Hakluyt. vol. iii. pp. 239, 240. 
" Nieuwe Wereldt. boek iii. cap. ix. 

' In the dedication of Laudonniere's notable history to Sir Walter Ra- 
leigh, dated March i, 1586, the delayed publication of the work is thus ad- 
verted to : "It having been suppressed and forgotten for nearly twenty years, 
I have, with the diligence of Mr. Hakluyt, a gentleman well-versed in geo- 
graphical history and in various languages and sciences, disinterred it, as it 
were, from the tomb, where it has lain so long in useless repose, and brought it 
before the world." M. Basanier, the publisher, says he followed the te.\t of the 
manuscript literatim, without any emendation or changes. 

* " That which is toward the arctic or north pole is called New France 
insomuch as in the the year 1524, Jean Verrazano, a Florentine, was sent by 
King Francis I. and Madame, the regent, his mother, to the new countries, on 



358 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

coast, some to obtain cod-fish and others furs. As re- 
lated by Jean Alphonse, the people of the village of 
L' Anormee Berge had " many peltries of all kinds of 
animals." The large quantities of beaver, otter, and 
other skins obtained from the Manants, dwelling at the 
mouth of the Grande River, induced the speculative 
Frenchmen engaged in the traffic to erect at this 
point a small fort, where their factors might reside and 
more advantageously enlarge their purchases of furs. 
The Indian village, on the island on which the city of 
New York is built, was picturesquely situated on the 
border of the deep, limpid lake, then covering the sites 
of the plots of ground included between the lines of 
Elm, Baxter, Worth, and Franklin streets. Near the 
south end of the lake (which extended as far as the in- 
tersection of Centre and Duane streets and emptied 
into the Hudson at Canal Street) was a small island. 
Eligible, and opposite the tongue of land on which the 
Manants dwelt, the French fur factors selected it as the 

which he landed and explored the whole coast extending from the tropic of 
Cancer, namely, from the twenty-eighth to the fiftieth degree, and still more 
toward the north. 

" He planted at this place the ensigns and arms of the king of France, so 
that the Spaniards themselves, who were there afterward, have called this 
country French land. It extends in latitude from the twenty-fifth to the fifty- 
fourth degree toward the north ; and in longitude, from the two hundred and 
tenth to the three hundred and thirtieth degree. The east part of it is called 
by the moderns the land of Norumberge, which ends at the Gulf of Gamas, 
which separates it from the island of Canada." 

" Celle qui est vers le pole Arctique ou Septentrion, est nommee la 7touuelle 
France , potir autaht que /' an mil cinq ccs vingt qtiaire, yean Verrazano Flor- 
entin fiit enuoyd par le Roy Francois premier, df par Madame la Regenie sa 
mere aux terres neuues, ausquellcs ilprit terre or' descouurit ioute la coste qui 
est depuis le Tropiqiie de Catice7; a scauoir depuis le vingt-huictiesme degre iusques 
au cinqtiantiesme : (Sr" encore plus deuers le North. II planta en ce pais les en- 
seignes, &" armoiries du Roy de Frace : de sorte que les Espagnols mesmes qui y 
furent depuis ont name ce pais terre Francesque. * * * La partie Orientate d^ 
icelle est nommee par les modemes terre de Norumberge, laquelle abortit au Golphe 
de Gamas, qui la separe d' auec V Isle de Canada." — L' historie notable de la 
Florida sitvee es Indes Occidentales. Par le Capitaine Laudonni^re. Mise 
en lumiere par M. Basanier. Paris, 15S6. pp. i, 2. 






V ^^ >^' 







Copy of a part of a map of the city of New York made by James Lyne in 1728. 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 359 

site of the fortified trading house which they erected 
and called Le Fort d' Anormee Berge (The Fort of the 
Grand Scarp).' 

The French geographer, Andre Thevet, who sailed 
along the coast of La Terre d' Anormee Beree, in 
1 556, besides corroborating some of the precedlncr 
statements respecting the discovery of New France, 
and mentioning the fact that the Grande River was 
called by his countrymen the river of " Norombeo-ue," 
and by the Indians " Aggoncy," says": " Having left 
Florida on the left hand with a great number of 
islands, islets, gulfs, and capes, a river presents itself, 
one of the beautiful rivers that are in the world, 
which we named Norombegue, and the Indians Ag- 
goncy, and which is marked on some marine charts 
Grande river.^ Several other beautiful rivers enter 

' The Dutch, when they took possession of Manants Island, in the seven- 
teenth century, called the lake het Versch water (the Fresh water). The island 
on which the French built the fort was, in 1728, selected as the site of a pow- 
der-house, which was erected there to isolate it from common intruders. John 
Fitch, in the summer of 1796, navigated his small steamb.oat on the Fresh 
water lake.— FzV/^ History of the city of New York. By D^vid T. Valentine. 
1S53. pp. ir, 2S2-2S4. History of the city of New York. By Mrs. Martha J. 
Lamb. New York and Chicago, 1877-1S80. vol. ii. pp. 423, 424, 565, 736. 
Documentary history of New York. vol. ii. p. 603. 

* Andre Thevet was born at Angouleme, France, about the second year of 
^ the sixteenth century. He visited Italy, Greece, Egypt, and Palestine, and on 
his return to France, in 1554, published an account of his travels. In July, 
1555, he accompanied Chevalier Villegagnon to Brazil to plant a colony there 
of French Protestants. When Thevet arrived at Rio Janeiro in November, he 
was taken sick, and to hasten his recovery he embarked for France on the last 
day of January, 1556. The vessel sailed on the home voyage northward along 
the coast of North America as far as Newfoundland. Thevet died in Paris" 
November 23, 1590. He was the author of the following works: " Cos- 
mographie du Levant," Lyons, 1554; " Les singulairites de la France antarc- 
tique, autrement nommee Ame'rique, et de plusieurs autres tSrres et iles de'cou- 
vertes de notre temps," Paris, 1556; " Discours de la bataille de Dreux," 
Paris, 1563 ; " Cosmographie universelle, illustree de diverses figures des choses 
les plus remarquables vues par I'auteur," Paris, 1571 ; and " Les vrais portraits 
et vies des hommes illustres, grecs, latins, et paiens, recueille's d« leurs tableaux, 
livres, medailles, antiques et modemes," Paris, 1584. 

^ Aggoncy ox Aggonzi %\gxi\^&A i\i&\iQzA. Voyages. Hakluyt. vol i'i n 
231. _ J . iJ. 



36o DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

this one, on which formerly the French had built a 
small fort about ten or twelve leagues up it, which fort 
was surrounded by fresh water that empties into the 
river, and this place was called the fort of Norom- 
begue." ' 

The site of the fort of L' Anormee Berge is indicated 
by Gerard Mercator on his celebrated map of the 
world, made at Duisburg, Germany, in 1569. The 
famous cartographer not only designates the situation 
of the French fort on the east side of the Grande River 
with a conventional sign used by map-makers, but 
also inscribes the name "Norombega" immediately 
over it. As is seen, he outlines the Grande River to 
the height of its navigation, at the confluence of the 
Mohawk, as far as the French had explored it.^ 

It seems that the French fur merchants undertook to 
build, about the year 1 640, a chateau or castle, at the 

' ^'Ayaiit laisse la Florida a main gaiilche, aiiec grand nonibre d' Isles, 
Isleites, Gottlplu's, ^ Proinonioires, se presente I'vne dcs belles riiiiercs qui soil en 
totite la ierre, ndinee de nous Norombegue, 6f des Barbares Aggoncy, (^ marquee 
en quclques Cartes marines riuiere grande. II entre plusieurs autres belles 
riuieres dans ceste cy, b' sur laquelle iades les Francois feirent bastir vn petit 
fort, quelqiie dix ou douze lieucs en icelle, lequel estoit emiii-one d' eau doulce, qui 
se va desgorger das icelle : &f/tit nommee ceste place le fort de Norombegue." — La 
cosmograpliie vniverselle. D' Andre Thevet. A Paris, 1575. torn. ii. chap, 
iii. fol. 1008, b. 

"^ The copy of Mercator's map preserved in the National library, in Paris,* 
which is entitled " A ova et aiicta orbis icr7-ae descriptlo at usum navigantituji 
emendetd accovimodata," measures seventy-eight and a half inches by fifty 
inches. On this map is represented the earth in piano, i\\Q meridians being 
paralleled and the parallels of latitude straight lines, according to those 
principles of projection known as Mercator's projection. Respecting the latter, 
he says, in an inscription on the chart : " On account of which considerations, 
we have increased gradually the length of the degrees of latitude toward each 
pole proportionate to the increase of the parallels beyond the length which 
they have on the globe, relatively to the equator : — " Quibus consideratis, 
gradtis latitudimnn versus utrurnque polum paulatitn auximus pro incremento 
parallelorum supra ralionem quant habint ad acqttinoctialem," Abraham 
Ortelius, the eminent cartographer, speaks of this map of Mercator's as "his 
never-enough-praised universal chart, — Sua nunquam satis laudata tmiversalis 
tabula." 



Saf 





A part 



Sdguenai 




ator's map of ihe 



Ills de la geographii 
orientales, public's en fac-simile." par iM. Jomard, Paris. 



1 d'anciennes cartes europcennes et 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 361 

heio^ht of the naviVation of the Grande River. As it 
appears, they selected a site for the building on the 
long, low island lying in the bay, on the west side of 
the river, near the present southern limits of the city 
of Albany. The walls of the castle and its protecting 
earthworks were almost completed when a great 
freshet inundated the island and damaged the structure 
so much that the French abandoned the occupation of 
the island. Jean Alphonse evidently refers to the 
abortive undertaking, when describing the situation of 
the Indian village at the mouth of the Grande River, he 
says : " North of it there is a bay, in which is a small 
island that is often subject to storms, [those causing 
freshets,] and cannot be inhabited." The island bore 
the name of Castle Island for more than a century there- 
after, but it is now known as Van Rensselaer's Island. 
The fact that the French had ascended the Grande 
River to the heigrht of its navioration to trade with the 
Indians long before Henry Hudson explored it, is cor- 
roborated by still stronger testimony than that already 
presented. One of the earliest maps representing the 
territory of Nieu Nederlandt (New Netherland), or 
that part of New France which the French had called 
La Terre d' Anormee Berge, is the figurative chart 
presented to their high mightinesses, the Lords States 
General of the United Netherlands, on the eleventh 01 
October, 16 14, by a number of Dutch merchants,, 
praying for a special license to navigate and traffic 
within the limits of this part of North America.^ Upon 
this map, m.ade in 1614, are inscribed "curious notes 
and memoranda concerning the natives of the country, 
which the well-informed discoverer of the chart inti- 

' A copy of this chart in the general library of the State of New York, at 
Albany, is entitled : " The Original Carte Figurative, of which the above is 
an accurate fac-simile, was found on the 26th of June, 1841, in the Locket-kas, 
of the States General, in the Royal archives at the Hague." 



362 DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 

mates were written by one of the Dutch companions 
of Henry Hudson, who accompanied the Enghsh 
navigator, on the voyage of 1609.' One of these ex- 
planatory notes contains the undeniable testimony that 
the French were the discoverers of the Grande River, 
and that they had been trading with the Mohawks 
long before the Half Moon sailed up the river. The 
plain language of the inscription makes all explanation 
oi its meaning unnecessary : " But as far as one can 
understand by what the Maquaas [Mohawks] say and 
show, the French come with sloops as high up as their 
country to trade with them." ^ 

Amonor the things which were shown to the Dutch 
explorers by the friendly Mohawks to confirm what 
they had said concerning the French, were the con- 
spicuous ruins of the unfinished castle. The sagacious 
Hollanders, not unlikely thinking that the dilapidated 
building might b^ repaired with little expense, and 
made useful to them as a trading house, should they 
be licensed by the government of the Netherlands to 
return there to trade for furs with the Indians, took 
measurements of its walls and outworks. These memo- 
randa they also inscribed on the map of New Nether- 
land. The castle, as described on the chart, was fifty- 
eight feet wide between the walls, and built in the form 
of a square, surrounded by a moat eighteen feet wide. 

* " This map," says John Romeyn Brodhead, the historian, " is un- 
doubtedly one of the most interesting memorials we have. It is about three 
feet long, and shows, very minutely, the course of the Hudson River from 
Manhattan to above Albany, as well as a portion of the sea-coast ; and con- 
tains, likewise, curious notes and memoranda about the neighboring Indians, — 
the work, perhaps, of one of the companions of Hudson * * * and made 
within five years of the discovery of our river, its fidelity of delineation is 
scarcely less remarkable than its high antiquity." — Address of J. Romeyn 
Brodhead, November 20, 1844. Coll. New York Historical Soc. 1845. p. 16. 

* " Ma so velc men heeft connen verstaeit uyi i seggen ettde bediiyen van de 
Maquaas so comen de Franfoyseit ?net sloiipeii tot bovein aen haer land met 
haerluy handelen." 



DISCOVERIES OF AMERICA. 363 

The interior building was thirty-six feet long and 
twenty-six wide/ 

Although the Dutch explorers never left any defi- 
nite information that they were personally the build- 
ers of the fortification on Castle Island, yet by naming 
it Fort Nassau, in honor of the stadtholder, Maurice, 
prince of Orange and of Nassau, they permitted his- 
torians to infer that they had constructed it, even be- 
fore they had been privileged by the government of 
the Netherlands to occupy the country. 

As late as the year 1680, the Dutch residents of 
Albany were unenlightened respecting the nationality 
of the builders of the fort, some supposing that the 
Spaniards had erected it. This assumption was not 
generally credited, as there were no facts known that 
would verify the presence of the Spaniards in this 
part of the country. The two Labadist missionaries, 
Jasper Dankers and Peter Sluyter, who visited Albany 
in 1680, thus speak of the fort on Castle Island, and of 
the conjecture concerning the people who had built it : 
" In the afternoon [Sunday, April 28th] we took a 
walk to an island upon the end of which there is a fort 
built, they say, by the Spaniards. That a fort had been 
there is evident enough from the earth thrown up, but 
it is not to be supposed that the Spaniards came so far in- 
land to build forts when there are no monuments of them 
to be seen on the sea-coasts, where, however, they 
have been according; to the tradition of the Indians." ^ 

' ''^ Fort van Nassoureen is binnen de wallen 58 voeten wydt in V viercant 
de gracht is wydt iS voeten." Fort Nassau is 58 feet wide between the walls 
and built as a square ; the moat is 18 feet wide. " 't hitjs is 36 voeten lanch en 
26 ivytin t fort." The house in the fort is 36 feet long and 26 wide. 

" Journal of a voyage to New York and a tour in several of the American 
colonies in 1679 and 1680, by Jasper Dankers and Peter Sluyter of Wiewerd in 
Friesland. Translated from the original MSS. in the Dutch for the Long 
Island Historical Society by Henry C. Murphy. Memoirs of Long Island Hist. 
Soc. 1867. vol. i. p. 318. 



INDEX. 



Abaco, Great and Little, 107, 184. 

Abaioa, town, 224. 

Aborigines, I, 18, ig. {See Lzdians.) 

Abraham, 5. 

Abreu, Capistrano de, 213, 220. 

Abyla, mountain, 4. 

Abyssinia, 58. 

Ada, 228. 

Adam, tomb of, 57. 

Adam of Bremen, 40, 41. 

Adaminai, island, 154. 

Adams, Clement, 203. 

Ethiopia, 60, 212. 

Africa, 4. 5, 59, 60, 61, 63, 64, 69, 

70, 73. 77. 85, 219. 
Afranius, L., 60. 
Agave, 249, 252. 
Agesingue, 85. 
Aggoncy, 351, 359, 360. 
Agnaneo, island, 221. 
Aguados, 78. 
Aguajaluco, 234. 
Aguilar, Geronimo de, 239, 240, 242, 

267. 
Aguino, Marcos de, 265, 
Ajes, 129. 
Alabama, 275. 
Alaminos, 275. 

Albany, N. Y., 357, 361, 362, 363. 
Albuquerque, Affonso d', 285. 
Alderley, Lord Stanley of, 295. 
Alexander VI., Pope, 142, 145. 
Alexandria, 59, 194. 
Alfonce, Jan, {See Alphottse.) 
Alfragranus, 75, 76. 
Allfonsce, Jehan, {See Alphoiise.) 
Aloe, 124, 136. 
Alonso X., 61. 

Alphonse, Jean, 352, 353-356, 353. 
Altars, 235. 

Alvarador, Pedro de, 236. 
Amalfi, 63. 
Amasis, 2. 
Amatl, 264, 268. 
Amber, 264, 268. 
America, name, 218, 219. 



Amerige, name, 218, 219. 

Amorciti, Carlo, 295. 

Amplieres, 8. 

Ampollettas, 69. 

Anaximander, 71. 

Ancon bajo, 279. 

Andaman, 57. 

Andrada, Francisco d', 300, 301. 

Andros, island, 107. 

Angelo, Michael, 265. 

Angels, 5. 

Anghiera, 181. 

Ango, Jean, 298, 339. 

Ango & Son, 339. 

Angouleme, 319. 

Animals, domesticated, 109, I16, 123, 

147, 231, 26S, 283. 
Animals, wild, 8, 166, 202, 215, 258, 

308, 324. 
Anicatiye, 281. 
Aniues, les, 346. 
Anormee Berge, L', 348, 349, 350, 

351 ; le fort d' 359, 360. 
Anoxa, 281. 
Antediluvians, i, 6. 
Antilla, island, 79, 84. 
Antipater, Cselius, 60. 
Antipodes, 88, 89. 
Antiquaries, Royal Soc. of Northern, 

23. 33. 34. 
Apianus, Petrus, 219. 
Appalachee Bay, 279. 
Appalachicola Bay, 270. 
Aqueducts, i, 10, 12, 252, 270. 
Arabian Gulf, 60. 
Arabian Sea, 59. 
Arambe, 281, 284. 
Arctic Ocean, 217. 
Aristotle, 71, 332, 336. 
Arna-Magnoean collection, 34. 
Arnold, Governor Benedict, 43, 
Arona, 18 r. 

Arrana, Diego, 133, 149. 
Arroba, 123. 
Arrows. {See Indians.) 
Arsenals, 264. 



365 



366 



INDEX. 



Asher, G. M., 300. 

Asia, 4, 57, 142, 153, 192, 215, 219; 

wife of Promelheub, 219. 
Asius, 2ig. 

Astrolabe, 66-68, 79, 125, I23. 
AlhenDsus, 198. . 
Athens, 17. 
Atlantic empire, 5, 8, 17'; island, 

4-21, 80 ; ocean, early navigation 

of, 4, 59 ; name, 7 ; impassaljle, 

17, 18, 21 ; navigated, 72, 79, 80, 

89 ; race, 17. 
Atlas, 7, 8. 

Atwood's key, 107, 108. 
Aubert, Thomas, 298, 299. 
Autochthon, 8. 
Avila, Pedro Arias de, 229. 
Axes, 236, 237. 
Ayala, Pedro de, 195. 
Ayllon, Lucas Vasquez de, 279, 281, 

282, 284. 
Azaes, 8. 
Azores, 67, 74, 78, 79, 140, 145, 157, 

158, 213. 

Bacallaos or baccallaos, land of, 197, 

200, 202, 330. 
Bachian, inland, 294. 
Bacon, Roger, 62. 
Badajos, congress of, 296. 
Badakhshan, 57. 
Bahamas, the, 107. 
Bahia de todos os Santos, 214. 
Bakelos, name, 198, 203. 
Balboa, Vasco Nuiiez de, 225-228. 
Banda, 292. 

Bardsen, Ivar, treatise of, 23, 
Barges or berges, 248, 349. 
Barrett, William, 188. 
Barros, Joam de, 68. 
Bartolome, Francisco, 240. 
Basanier, M., 357, 358. 
Bastidas, Rodrigro de, 174, 225. 
Baths, 12, 266. 
Baya Isleos, 330. 
Beamish, North Ludlow, 25. 
Bear, the Great and Little, 213. 
Bears, 199, 202. 
Beaufort, N. C., 310. 
Behaim, Martin, 67, 80, 290. 
Behring's Strait, 303, 30S. 
Behring, Vitus, 30S. 
Beimeni, island of, 221, 224, 278. 
Belem, 177. 

Belle Isle, Strait of, 297, 345. 
Bells, 176. 

Beneventanus, Marcus, 215. 
Benewitz, Peter, 219. 
Berg, Joshua van, 74. 
Bergenroth, G. A., 187. 
Bermudas, 356. 



Bermudez, Juan, 356. 

Bernaldez, Andres, 120. 

Bernardino, Cardinal, 154, 

Berruguette, Alonso, 265. 

Beseneghe, 212. 

Bettilem, 177. 

Bethune, Vice-admiral, 64, 

Bible, La, 61. 

Biddle, Richard, 195. 

Bimini, fountain of, 222, 224 ; island 

of, 224, 278. 
Birds, 100, 103, 104, 105, 109, 116, 

122, 123, 147, 166, 181, 203, 308. 
Bjanneyjar, 34. 

Bjarni, voyages of, 25-27, 37, 40. 
Block Island, 320. 
Blood-letting, 164, 29S. 
Bobadilla, Francisco de, 172. 
Boemia, Martin of, 290. 
Bohemia, Martin of, 67. 
Bohio or Bosio, 1 14, 130, 133. 
Boiuca, 221. 

Borrequen, island of, 148, 221. 
Boulenger, Ludovicus, 219, 
Bourbon, Charles de, 338. 
Boursier, Jacques, 339. 
Bows. {Si'e Indians.) 
Bradley, Thomas, 195, 
Brahmans, 57. 
Brass, 8, 269. 
Brattahlid, 24, 28. 
Brazil, 173, 206, 207, 212, 213, 2T4, 

216, 220, 228, 2&6, 300, 352, 359 ; 

island of, 195 ; port of, 175, 179. 
Brazil-wood, 216, 229, 2S6. 
Breidafjord, 25. 
Bretons, 297. 

Brevoort, James Carson, 343. 
Bridges, 164, 25S, 270. 
Brisa or Briso, island, 320. 
Bristol, 73, 18S, 189, 192, 194, 195, 

196, 197, 199. 
Britons, 297. 
Brittany, 301, 304. 
Brodhead, John Komeyn, 362. 
Brown, Ravvdon, igo. 
Brunelleschi, Alderotto, 338. 
Bull, Friar Bernardo, 152, ig6. 
Burma, 57. 
Bygd, 24. 

Cabo Bajo, 330. 
Cabo Casinas, 175. 
Cabo de Arenas, 330. 
Cabo de Boa Esperanfa, 6g. 
Cabo de Campana, 126. 
Cabo de Cinquin, 127. 
Cabo de Corrienies, 224. 
Cabo de Cuba, 125. 
Cabo de las Conchas, 171. 
Cabo de las Iliguaras, 278. 



INDEX. 



1^7 



Cabo del Elefante, 127. 

Cabo del Estrella, 127. 

Cabo del Isles, 115. 

Cabo del Rlonte, 127. 

Cabo del Pico, 126. 

Cabo de Palmas, 1 18. 

Cabo de San Nicolas, 152. 

Cabo de Santa Elena, 279, 2S0, 284, 

330. 
Cabo Deseado, 292, 293, 
Cabo Fuerte, 152. 
Cabo Hermoso, 114. 
Cabo Eindo, 127. 
Cabo Santa Ciuz, 154. 
Cabo Santa Maria de la Consolacion, 

174. 

Caboto, Giovanni, his proposals to 
Henry VIE of England ; sails from 
Bristol, iSS ; his voyage, 188, 1S9 ; 
Prima Tierra Vista, igo ; island of 
Sant Joan, 190 ; maps, 185, iqi, 
192 ; Soncino's account of his dis- 
coveries, 192-194 ; his globe, 193 ; 
Cabot's second voyage, 194, 195 ; 
described, 195, 196 ; field of his dis- 
coveries, 185, 201, 210, 300. 

Caboto, Ludovicus (Lewis), i83. 

Caboto, Sanctus, 188. 

Caboto, Sebastiano, his voyages, ig6- 
199 ; extent of his explorations, 200, 
202 ; his maps and discoveries, 203, 
204 ; congress of Badajos, 296. 

Cabo Tormentoso, 69, 205. 

Cabot, {See Caboto.^ 

Cabral, Pedro Alvarez, 206, 207. 

Cacamatzin, prince of, 256, 260. 

Cacao, 267 ; liquor, 263 ; nuts, 176, 
269. 

Cadamosto, Luigi da, 66, 300, 

Cadiz, 7, 60. {See Gades.) 

Csesar, calendar of Julius, 107. 

Caiougas, 346. 

Calachionies, 239. 

Calicut, 206, 336. 

Calpe, mountain, 4. 

Cam, Diugo, 67. 

Cambaluc, 57. 

Camos, Martin, 238. 

Campeachy, 230, 23S. 

Canada, 345, 354, 355 ; river of, 357 ; 
island of, 357, 358. 

Canals, 9, 10, 13, 14, 252. 

Canary Islands, 72, 74, 79, 95, 97, 
104, 134, 158, 160. 

Caiiaveral, 279. 

Cannibals. {See Indians.) 

Canoes. {See hidiaiis.) 

Cano, Sebastian del, 295. 

Canso, Strait of, 201. 

Cantino, Alberto, 211. 

Capac, 289. 



Cap de la Franciscane, 354. 

Cape Bojador, 64, 66, 145. 

Cape Breton, 342, 351, 354, 355. 

Cape Breton Island, 191, 201, 297. 

Cape Briton. {See Cape Breton.) 

Cape Buona Vista, 297. 

Cape Catticara, 293. 

Cape Charles, 314. 

Cape Comorin, 294. 

Cape de Bertoni. {See Cape Breton.) 

Cape de Nao, 63, 64. 

C. de S. Maria, 316, 319. 

Cape Fear, 306. 

Cape Henry, 314. 

Cape Eookout, 310. 

Cape Neddock, 329, 

Cape North, 201. 

Cape of England, 185, 201, 

Cape of Florida, 224. 

Cape of Good Hope, 69, 85, 205, 323. 

Cape of Norombegue, 354, 355. 

Cape of St. John, 354. 

Cape of St. Mary, 316, 319. 

Cape of the Bretons, 297. {See Cape 

Breton.) 
Cape of the Franciscan, 354. 
Cape of the Holy Spirit, 289. 
Cape of the Virgins, 289, 292. 
Cape Prince of Wales, 308. 
Cape Ras, 297, 
Cape Ray, 201. 

Cape St. Augustine, 212, 229, 286. 
Cape St. Roque, 228. 
Cape St. Vincent, 77, 84. 
Cape Verd, 74, 78. 
Cape Verd Islands, 72, 74, 75, 86, 

145, 146, 168. 
Caradoc of Elancarvan, 43, 
Caravels, 96, 180. 
Caria, sierras of, 215. 
Cariay, 178. 
Caribbees, 148. 
Caribbean Islands, 174. 
Caribi, 160. 
Caris, island of, 135, 
Carixagusignanin, 281. 
Carli Fernando, 302, 335. , 
Carli Francisco, 338. 
Carolinas, archipelago, 85. 
Carpets, 260. 

Carreira, Visconde da, 64. 
Carroll, B. R., 309. 
Carthagena, Juan de, 2S9. 
Carthaginian merchants, 79 
Cartier, Jacques, 42, 344, 345, 352. 
Cartier, John, 195. 
Carvajal, Alonzo Sanchez de, 152. 
Casada, Caspar de, 289, 292. 
Casas, Bartolome de las, 107, iiS, 

126. 
Caspian Sea, 75, 334. 



368 



INDEX. 



Cassava, 242, 

Cassia, 213, 2i6, 

Castellanos de Oro, 250. 

Castilblanco, 250. 

Castilla del Oro, 183. 

Castle Island, 361, 362, 363. 

Cathay, 51, 58, 72, 74, 82, 84, 118, 

125, 174, 175, 178, 180, 182, 186, 

188, 199, 201, 205, 207, 284, 297, 

301, 306, 332, 336. 
Cat Island, 107, 108. 
Cattigara, 227. 
Caunaboa, 149, 156. 
Causeways, 256, 257, 258, 270. 
Cautio, 223. 
Cavalcanti, Guido, 62, 
Cavo de Inglaterra, 185, 20I. 
Cazabi, 164. 

Cazadilla, Diego Ortiz de, 86. 
Celer, Q. Metellus, 60. 
Cemies, 154, 155. 
Cempoalla, 249. 
Ceuta, 63. 
Ceylon, 57. 
Chabot Philippe, 339. 
Chalchihuis stones, 251, 259, 265. 
Champlain, Samuel de, 68, 347, 348. 
Champoton, 230, 233. 
Chapultepec, 252, 270, 
Charles V., of Spain, 191, 199, 240, 

249. 
Charles's wain, I02. 
Charybdis, 349. 
Chehkiang, 83. 
Chersonesus aurea, 226, 227. 
Chesapeake Bay, 314, 343. 
Chiahuitzla, 249. 
Chicora, 280, 281, 282. 
Chila, 277. 

China, 55, 57, 74, 75, 82, 84. 
Cholula, 254. 
Churchhill, collections of A. and J., 

71- 
Cibao, mines of, 150. 
Cimbri, 334. 
Cinnamon, 345. 
Cintra, Pedro de, 66. 
Cipango, 84, 204, III, I14, 115, 116, 

193- 
Circumnavigation of the earth, 295. 
Claude, wife of Francis I, 320. 
Claude or Claudia, island, 320. 
Cleasby, Ricliard, 33. 
Cleito, 7, II. 
Clemeni IV., Pope, 52. 
Climates, 166, 299, 336. 
Cloves, 294, 345. 
Cocayo, 281. 
Cocca, Anionia, 289. 
Cochin Cinna, 57. 
Codfish, 198, 202, 203. 



Coelho Goncalo, 215. 

Coelho Nicolas, 206. 

Cogswell, Joseph G., 307, 

Cohoes, N. Y., 351. 

Cojohuacan, 258, 274, prince of, 260. 

Colba, 114. 

Colibre, 135. 

Coligni, Admiral Gaspard de, 340. 

Coloma, Juan de, 93. 

Colombo, Cristoforo. {See Christo- 
pher Cohimbtts.) 

Colombo, Dominico, 70. 

Colombo, Fernando. {See Ferditiand 
Columbus.) 

Colon, Cristobal. {See Christopher 
Columbus^ 

Colon, Diego. {See Diego Columbus.') 

Colon, Luis, 71. 

Columbus, Bartolome', 86, 87, 172. 

Columbus, Christopher, birthplace, 
70 ; parents, 70 ; sea-faring, 72, 
73 ; geographical knowledge, 74— 
8c ; correspondence with Toscan- 
elli, 80 ; proposals to King John 
II., of Portugal, 85; sends his 
brother to England, 86 ; goes to 
Spain, 87 ; his project discussed at 
Salamanca, 87-go ; its considera- 
tion postponed by Ferdinand and 
Isabella, go ; intends to go to 
France, go ; befriended by Friar 
Juan Perez, 90, 91 ; another con- 
ference, 91 ; unfavorable decision 
91 ; Luis de Santangel's help, 92 
Columbus commissioned, 93-95 
intends to make a sea-chart, 96 
sails from Palos, g6 ; keeps his 
reckoning short, g8 ; observes the 
variations of the magnetic needle, 
g3, 99 ; conduct of his crew, 100- 
102 ; discovers island of Guana- 
hana, 107 ; his landing, 108 ; the 
people, loS-ilo ; calls the island 
San Salvador, m ; discovers the 
islands of Snnta Maria de la Con- 
cepcion, Fernandina, Isabela, and 
Cuba, 113-116; believes he has 
reached Asia, 120 ; sends embassa- 
dors to the Grand Khan of Cathay, 
120 ; productions of Cuba, 121 ; 
natives, 122, 123; returns from the 
north, 124 ; his high latitiules, 126 ; 
explores the coast of Espaiiola 127, 
128 ; its natives, productions, and 
soil, 128-130; builds Villa de la 
Navidad, 132, 133 ; sails for 
Spain, 135 ; the voyage, 137 ; 
anchors in the Tagus, 140 ; visits 
the king of Portugal, 141 ; arrives 
at Palos, 141; celebration of his dis- 
coveries, 142-144. 



INDEX. 



369 



Columbus's second voyage, 146 ; dis- 
covers the islands of Dominica, 
Marigalante, Sanla Maria de Guad- 
alupe, 146, 147 ; his sea-chart, 
148 ; arrives at Villa de la Navidad, 
148 ; builds the town of Isabela 
and castle of San Tomas, 150, 151 ; 
appoints a council, 152 ; coasts 
Cuba, 152 ; believes it to be Asia, 
153 ; sails for Spain, his compasses, 
157 ; his pilots, 158 ; arrives at 
Cadiz, 159 ; goes to Burgos, 159 ; 
his privileges prejudiced, 167. 
Columbus's third voyage, 168 ; dis- 
covers the island of Trinidad, 169 ; 
sees the continent, 169 ; Tierra de 
Gracia, 170 ; enters the Gulf of 
Paria, 171 ; map of the country, 
171 ; reaches EspaHola, 172 ; sent 
in chains to Spain, 172. 

Columbus's fourth voyage, 174 ; dis- 
covers the island of iNIantinino, 175; 
reaches Espariola, 175 ; sails to the 
Guanaia islands, 175 ; captures a 
canoe laden with Indian commodi- 
ties, 175 ; explores the coast of 
Veragua, 177-1S7, 226, 227 ; sails 
to Jamaica, 180 ; returns to Spain, 
182 ; dies at Valladolid, 182 ; his 
map, 182, 183, 300. 

Columbus, Diego, 87, 90, 152, 168. 

Columbus, Ferdinand, 70, 71, 168. 

Comargo, 277, 278. 

Combahee River, 284. 

Comogre, 225. 

Compass. {See Mariner s compass.) 

Conchillos, Lopezde, 276. 

Connecticut, 253, 354 ; river, 354. 

Contarina, Gasparo, 199. 

Copper, 8, 10, iii, 176, 178, 199, 
236, 237, 269, 322, 328. 

Coquibacoa, Gulf of, 164. 

Cordoba, Francisco Hernando de, 
229, 233, 238, 278. 

Corn, 283. 

Coronel, Pedro Fernandez, 152. 

Correa, Pedro, 77. 

Cortereal, Ga>par, 207-211. 

Cortereal, Joao Vaz, 207 

Cortereal Miguel, 207, 208, 21 1. 

Cortes, Hernando. Diego Velasquez 
appoints him captain-general, 237 ; 
sails to the island of Cozumel, 238 ; 
receives embassadors from Monte- 
zuma, 239 ; the presents, 243-245 ; 
explores the coast of Mexico, 247 ; 
builds Villa Rica de Vera Ciuz, 
249 ; begins his march toward the 
city of Mexico, 249 ; engagements 
with the Tlascallans, 250 ; eniers 
Tlascalla, 251 ; marches to Cho- 



lula, 253 ; escorted into the city of 
Mexico by Montezuma, 259-261 ; 
visits the market-place and the tem- 
ple of Huitzilopochtli, 267-272 ; 
beseiges the city, 273 ; sends pre- 
sents to the emperor, 274. 

Corvea, Caspar, 206. 

Corvo, island, 100, 158. 

Cosa, Juan de la, 173, 183, 184, 1S5, 

201. 

Cosco, Leander de, 142. 

Cotastlan, 239, 266. 

Cotta, Joannes, 215. 

Cotton, log, no, in, 119, 121, 123, 

124, 136, 148, 176, 178, 265, 284. 
Cotys, 219. 
Coyba, 226. 
Cozumel, 238, 239. 
Crato, prior of, 141. 
Crawford and Balcarres, count of, 350. 
Critias, or the Atlantic, 3. 
Croesus, 2. 

Crooked Island, 107. 
Crosses, 230. 
Cruz, Juan de la, 265. 
Cuba, 114, 115, 116, it8, 126, 127, 

128, 152, 153, 154, 184, 197, 202, 

216, 232. 
Cuitlahuac, prince of, 260. 
Cuitlahuatzin, 270. 
Culba, 232. 
Culhua, 248. 
Culua, 235. 
Cusa, Cardinal Kicolaus de, So. 

Dagaghiano, Pier Francisco, 338. 

Dagmala-stad, 31-33. 

Datha, 2S2. 

Damascus, 59. 

Dankers, Jasper, 363. 

Darien, isthmus, 174, 177, 225, 226, 

227, 228, 315, 342. 
Davila, Pedrarias, 228. 
Davis, Henry, 19. 
Davis's Strait, 318. 

Declination, line of, 98, gg, 102, 158. 
De Costa, B F., 343. 
Degree, measures of, 76, 83, 9S. 
Delaware Bay, 315. 
Demons, 217, 28S. 
Demorgorgon, 198. 
Denis, Jean, 29S. 
Denmark, 334. 

Desmarquets, Jean Antoine, 299. 
Despinolles, Pierre, 339. 
Diaprepes, 8. 

Dias, Hartholomeu, 6g, 205. 
Diaz, Bernal, 21, 229 ; Father Juan, 

240. 
Diepa or Dieppe, 297, 298, 307, 334, 

351. 352. 



370 



INDEX. 



Dighton rock, 42. 

Disraeli, 350, 

Dods, Marcus, 89, 

Dogs, 123, 26S. 

Dominica, island of, 146. 

Dona Marina, 240, 242, 259, 260, 261, 

267. 
Drake, Sir Francis, 2g2. 
Drogio, island of, 47, 49. 
Ducats, 244, 245 
Duero, Antlres de, 237. 
Duharhe, 281, 2S3. 
Duisburg, 360. 
Dwarfs, 263. 

Eannes, Gil, 65. 

Eannes de Azurara, Gomes, 64. 

Earth, globular form of, 71, 88, 193; 

circumference of, 74, 75, 83; circum- 
navigation of, 295. 
East Cape, 30S. 
East Indies, 145. 
East River, 317. 
Eden, Richard, igg. 
Egypt, priests of, 2, 3, 21 ; invaded, 

5, 8 ; gods rule in, 6, 15 ; stars seen 

in, 72. 
Egyptians, chroniclers, 2, 4, 15 ; 

chronology of, 17 ; ships of, 18 ; 

hermetic books of, 20. 
Eider-ducks, 35. 
Ekallumiut, 30. 
Elasippus, 8. 
El Crespello, 265. 
Elephants, 8, g. 
El Gran Cairo, 22g. 
El Marien, 249. 
Elohim, 6. 
Emeralds, 244. 
Emmanuel, king of Portugal, 207, 

211. 
England, 73, 74, 186, 188. 
Eric, the Red, 23, 24 ; the wanderer, 

25- 
Escovedo, Rodrigo de, 108, 133, 149. 
Espaiiola, 104, 128, 130, 133, 135, 148, 

154, 159, 172, 175, 179, 182, 184. 
Espiritu Santo, Rio del, 278 ; Baya 

del, 279. 
Estotiland, 46, 49, 50. 
Estrithson, Sveyn, king of Denmark, 

to. 
Ethiopia, 60, 2I2. 
Eudasmon, 8. 
Eudoxus, 60. 
Euenor, 6, 7. 
Eugene IV., Pope, 83, 
Eumelus, 7. 
Europa, 219. 
Europe, 4, 5, 219. 
Eusebius, 299, 345, 



Euthydemus, 198. 

Euxine Sea, 52. 

Evangelista, island of, 1 53, 154. 

Everett, E., 34. 

Eyktar-stad, 31-33. 

Eynoult, Guillaume, 340. 

Ezcapuzalco, 265. 

Fabian, Robert, 197. 

Faroe islands, 22, 23. 

Fayal, island of, 67, 68. 

Ferdinand, king of Spain, 70, 72, 142, 

143, 144, 159, 160, 168, 172, 187, 

igS, 216. 
Fernandina, 113. 
Fish, 198, 202, 209, 241. 
Fitch, John, 359. 
Flateyensis, codex, 25. 
Flato, 25, book of, 25. 
Floki, the viking, 23. 
Flores island, 78. 
Florida, 124, 126, 200, 223-225, 275, 

276, 277, 278, 279, 307, 330, 342, 

344, 351, 352, 357, 358. 
Flowers, g, 115, 116, 251, 266, 309, 

314- 
Fonseca, J^ian Rodriguez de, 168, 276. 
Fornari, Baltano de, 71. 
Fort Caroline, 357. 
Fort Nassau, 363. 

Fortunate Islands, 74, 75, 331, 332. 
Foster, Andrew, 159, 
Fowls, 268, 283. 
Fox, G. v., 98, 107, 108. 
Francis I., king of France, 300, 301, 

319, 320, 338, 344, 351, 352, 357, 

358. 
Francesca, 307, 330, 351. 
Frederic III. of iJenmark, 25, 34. 
Freydis, 39. 
Frisland, island of, 45, 46, 4g, 50, 73; 

story of a fisherman of, 44, 46-50. 
Frizeland, 73. 
Fruits, g, 115, 116, 147, 166, 171, 241, * 

263, 324, 352. 
Fucus natans, gg, 100. 
Fuenterabia, 135, 183, 227. 
Fuerteventura, island of, g7. 
Fundv, Bay of, 201. 
Furdustrandir, 35, 41. 

Gadeira, 7. 

Gadeirica, 7. 

Galleys, 21. 

Galicia, 135, 141. 

Gallia Nova, 343. 

Galvano, Antonio, 64, 144, 200. 

Gnma, Vasco da, 205, 206. 

Gamart of Rouen, 2g8. 

Gamlason, Thorhall, 34. 

Gamas, Gulf of, 357, 358. 



INDEX. 



371 



Ganges, 142, 154, 226. 

Gardens, 12, 256, 257, 266. 

Garay, Francisco de, 275, 278, 

Gastaldi, Giacomo de, 326, 356. 

Gaul, 61. 

Georgia, State of, 279. 

Germany, 61. 

Giants, 6, 252, 253, 274, 282, 287. 

Gilbert, Sir Humplirey, 200, 201. 

Ginnungagap, 41. 

Gioja, Flavia, 63. 

Godeffroy, Adam, 340. 

Gods, divide the earth, 5 ; marry the 
daughters of man, 5 ; rule in Egypt, 
6, 15 ; half-gods, 6. 

Goes, Damiao de, 208. 

Golfo de las Flechas, 134, 135. 

Golfo de las Perlas, 171. 

Golfo Dulce, 214 

Gold, III, 115, 116, 117, 132, 136, 
149, 151, 167, 178, 179, 216, 226, 
229, 234, 236, 243, 251, 265, 269, 
274. 

Gomara, Francisco Lopez de, 199, 
200. 

Gomera, island of, 97, 99, 

Gomez, Estevan, 291, 296. 

Goncalves, Andre, 213. 

Graah, Captain W. A., 30, 31. 

Gracia, Tierra de, 170. 

Greenland, from Iceland, 22 ; discov- 
ered, 24 ; eastern district in, 25 ; 
sea of, 26, 216, 217 ; from New- 
foundland, 28. 

Grain, 23, 176, 178, 268, 283, 325. 

Grand Canary, 97. 

Grande River, 318, 319, 320, 346, 348, 
351, 353, 356. 358, 359, 360. 

Grand Khan of Cathay, 52, 54, 55, 56, 
58, 82, 94, 115, 117, 118, 120, 124, 

153. 189. ■ 

Grand Scarp, the, 348. 
Grand Turk Island, 78. 
Grapes, 42, 151, 313. 
Gratiosa, island, 107. 
Great Exuma Island, 107. 
Greco, wind, 161. 
Greece, invasion of, 5. 
Greeks, early civilization of the, 4, 
Greene, G. W., 302. 
Greenhalgh, Wentworth, 346. 
Gregory XIII., calendar of Pope, 

107. 
Grijalva, Juan de, 233, 237, 247, 278. 
Grimolfson, Bjarni, 34. 
Groote River, 318, 319, 346. 
Guacanagari, 149. 
Guacasualco River, 236. 
Guacaya, 28 r, 284. 
Guadalupe, 147, 14S, 157. 
Gualdape, 280. 



Guanaco, the, 287. 
Guanahani, the island, 107. 
Guanaia islands, 175, 214. 
Guatemala, 229. 
Guazpaltepec, 239. 
Gudrid, 40. 

Guerrero, Gonzalo, 239. 
Guinea, 64, 67, 74, 81, 85, 88, 352, 
Guisay, 115, 120. {^See Quinsay.) 
Gulf of Castles, 267. 
Gulf of Coquibacoa, 164. 
Gulf of Gamas, 357, 358. 
Gulf of Mexico, 352. 
Gulf of St. Lawrence, 297. 
Gulf of Venezuela, 164. 
Gulf Stream, the, 223. 
Gunnbjorn, the Norwegian, 23 ; sker- 
ries, 24. 
Gutierrez, Pedro, 107, 133, 149. 
Guyneth, Madoc, 43 ; Owen, 43, 44. 
Guyot, 61. 

Habacoa, 184, 

Hackit, Thomas, 344. 

Haki, 35. 

Hakluyt, Richard, 42, 44, 64, 203, 204, 

357. 
Hakon, Jonn, son of 25. 
Half Moon, 362. 
Hamacas, 147, 156. 
Hammocks, 147, 156, 163, 286. 
Hangchau, 83. 
Hanno, 60. 
Harlem River, 353. 
Harrisse, Henry, 160, 184. 
Hatchets, 176. 

Hauslab, M. le general de, 220. 
Havannah, the, 249, 
Hawks, 22. 
Hayti, 128, 167. 
Hekja, 35. 
Hell-Gate, 353. 
Helluland, 28, 34, 41, 42. 
Henderson, Ebenezer, 23. 
Flenry, prince of Portugal, 63, 64, 65, 

66, 67, 70, 79. 
Henry II. of France, 350. 
Henry VII., king of England, 86, 

186, 187, 192, 194, 195, 196, 197, 

199, 200, 201 ; VIII., 315, 341. 
Herbs, 115, 147, 173, 174, 178. 
Hercules, pillars of, 4, 7, 17, 18, 21, 

59, 60, 72, 197, 198. 
Herjulf, 24. 
Herjulfsnes, 24, 25, 
Herodotus, 2, 59. 
Heroes, 6. 
Herrera y Tordesillas, Antonio de, 

215- 
Hetland, 22. 
Hieroglyphics, I, 177, 249. 



372 



INDEX. 



Hitha, 283. 

Hochelaga, 345 ; river of, 354, 356. 

Hojeda, Alouzo de, 150, 173, 1S3. 

Holy Sepulchre, 133. 

Honduras, ISay of, 175, 214. 

Ilonfleur, 29S. 

Hop, 37, 40. 

Horns, 23. 

Horses, 12. 

Huag, 281. 

Hudson, Henry, 318, 361, 362. 

Hudson River, 316, 317, 318, 319, 269 
-272, 353. 357. 362. 

Huexotzinco, 258. 

Huitzilopochtli, idol, 247 ; temple of, 
267. 

Humboldt, Friedrich Heinrich Alex- 
ander von, 44, 56, 57, 183. 

Hvarf, 24. 

Hvidserk, 24, 25. 

Hylacomylus, 218. 

Iberian peninsula, 84. 

Ibernia, 192, 194. 

Icaria, 49. 

Iceland, 22, 23, 24, 25, 45, I93, 199, 
(See Island.) 

Ignami, 164. 

Incense, 235. 

India, 57, 61, 69, 70, 74, 75, 77, iSl, 
206. 

Indian Ocean, 314. 

Indians {See also Manants, Paesani, 
Paysans, Wild Men, IVilden), an- 
cestors, 252, 253 ; axes, 236, 237, 
324 ; ball-players, 284 ; bows and 
arrows, 134, 136, 162, 202, 2 10, 
230, 252, 265, 287, 288, 299, 312, 

324, 355 ; burial, 156, 163 ; ca- 
ciques, 129, 240, 258, 259, 267 ; 
cannibals, 135, 148, 164, 216 ; ca- 
noes, no, 119, 135, 164, 165, 175, 
258, 299, 312, 313, 324 ; carpenters, 
266 ; carpets, 260; cities, 251, 254, 
256, 258, 270; clothing, 123, 170, 
176, 178, 201, 202, 209, 216, 230, 
234, 235, 243, 280, 284, 286, 287, 
288, 298, 306, 312, 317, 321, 322, 

325, 356; clubs, 162, 202; color, 123, 
129, 130, 161, 169, 209, 2S1, 2S2, 
284, 287, 299, 307, 311, 312, 321 ; 
concubines, 262, 266 ; courts, 268 ; 
cuirasses, 230, 252, 263 ; daris, 
202 ; dwellings, 116, 117, 130, 163, 
164, 170, 209, 225, 286, 288, 314, 
324, 325 ; edifices, 230, 256, 257, 
258, 260, 261, 272; enchanters, 178, 
217 ; eyes, no, 307, 322 ; fabrics, 
170, 176, 178, 234, 241, 243, 
244, 250, 254, 256, 265, 266, 267 ; 
faces, no, 287, 307, 311, 321 ; 



fans, 245 ; farmer-generals, 239 ; 
feather-work, 216, 230, 24T, 245, 
259; fishing-hooks, n6, 17S ; fish- 
ing-nets, 116, 178, 189 ; flags, 230 
food, I2g, 162, .164, 176, 201, 232 
234, 241, 262, 364, 268, 288, 299, 
312, 325, 328; friendliness, 108, 
29S, 306, 310, 311, 316, 317, 321, 
322, 352, 355 ; furniture, 244, 260, 
268 ; giants, 252, 253, 282, 287 ; 
goldsmiths, 265 ; hair, 109, no, 
136, 161, 170, 2S1, 282, 283, 2S6, 
2S7, 288, 299, 307, 321, 322 ; ham- 
mocks, 147, 156, 163, 2S6 ; helmets, 
243, 265 ; hieroglyphics, i, 177, 
249; idols, 118, 154, 155, 229, 230, 
232, 234, 235, 247, 270, 271, 272 ; 
implements, 176, 189, 236, 237, 
324; javelins, 109, no, 134; kid- 
naped, 279, 2S0, 281 ; kings, 216, 
323 ; knives, 268 ; lances, 162, 202, 
230, 231, 252, 264; language, 120, 
162, 201, 210, 299, 355, 356 ; lapi- 
daries, 265; liquors, 263; longevity, 
216 ; magistrates, 130 ; markets, 
267, 271 ; masks, 129 ; medicine, 
164, 216, 288, 325 ; merchandize, 
267, 26S ; mirrors, 244 ; money, 

176, 269 ; morions, 265 ; musical 
instruments, 230, 272 ; name, 345 ; 
oars, no, 324; occupation, 12, 13, 
14, 15, 178, 264, 265, 266, 267, 
26S ; ornaments, in, 119, 163, T70, 
225, 229, 234, 236, 241, 243, 244, 
248, 250, 267, 274, 287, 321, 322, 
328 ; palaces, 225, 256, 266; paper- 
makers, 252, 264 ; painters, 242, 
265 ; painted faces, 109, 130, 210, 
230, 286, 287, 288, 299, 323 ; paint- 
ings, 230, 252 ; phlebotomy prac- 
tised, 164, 288 ; pikes, 252, 264 ; 
pipes, 264 ; plantations, 230, 257 ; 
police-system, 267 ; priests, 235, 
269, 283 ; pulilic works, g, 10, 252, > 
256, 257, 258, 270; religion, no, 
119, 123, 154, 155, 156, 216, 229, 
286, 2S8, 299, 230, 331, 356 ; sac- 
rifices, 16, 235, 239, 247, 254, 270- 
272 ; sculptors, 265 ; sculptures, 

177, 178, 229, 230; sepulchre, 17S; 
servants, 264 ; shields, 230, 234, 
243, 252, 264, 265; shoes, 244, 28S; 
silversmilhs, 265 ; slaves, no, 136, 
167, 210, 225, 267, 269 ; slings, 
202, 230, 252 ; snares, 189. 324 ; 
songs, 2S4, 325; spinners, 109, no; 
staiure, 109, no, 129, 161, 209, 
307, 311, 321, 356; sione-cutteis, 
266; superstitions, 156; swonls, 
176, 230, 231, 252, 264 ; tanners, 
268; temples, li, 12, 229, 230, 234, 



INDEX. 



373 



235, 254, 260, 270, 271 ; theatres, 
266 ; thread, 267, 284, 311 ; to- 
bacco, 121, 264, 268 ; traditions, 
252, 284, 363 ; traffic, 13, log, no, 
III, 129, 174, 298, 32S ; utensils, 
162, 262 ; villag-es, 13, 112, 117, 
122, 130 ; wares, 263, 267, 268,269 ; 
warlike, 355 ; warriors, 12, 14, 15, 
230, 231, 251, 252 ; weaving, 266 ; 
wines, 171, 178 ; wives, 162, 262, 
323 ; women, 122, 129, 162, 171, 
262, 281, 284, 2S8, 311, 312, 322. 

Indies, Si, 134, 159, 1S7. 

Infante Fortuna, 144. 

Insubria, 2S3. 

Inzignanin, 284. 

Ilhas Dezertas, 304. 

Ireland, 192, 194, 196 ; island of, 
356. (See Hernia.) 

Isabela, island of, 113, 115 ; town of, 
150, 154, 156, 157. 

Isabella, queen of Spain, 72, gi, 92, 
93, 142, 158, 159, 167, 168, 172, 
187, 195. 

Isla Blanca, 234. 

Isla de las Bocas, 179. 

Island, 23, 55, (See Ice/and.) 

Isla Rica, 228. 

Isla Santa, 169. 

Isole de Ladroni, 294. 

Isole Sfortunato, 292. 

Ithaca, 52. 

Iti, island of, 167. 

luca, 164. 

lucatan, 215. (See Yucatan.) 

Iztapalapan, 256, 270. 

Jackals, 268. 

Jacobus, 61. 

Jacquet, 56. 

Jamaica, 133, 152, 154, 180, 182. 

Japan, 57, 84, in. 

Java, 57, 294. 

Jerez of Ayamonte, Rodrigo de, l2o. 

Jerusalem, conquest of, 133. 

Jesters, 263. 

John I. king of Portugal, 63 ; II.. 67, 

69, 85 ; III,, 300, 301. 
Jomard, M., 185. 
Jonas, Arngrim, 33. 
Jones, Inigo, 43. 
Jordan River, 280, 284. 
Joseph, Master, 67. 
Juan, Prince, 70, 159, 168. 
Juana, island, 127, 182. 
Juanillo, 232. 
Juet, Robert, 319. 

Karlsefne, Snorro, 40 ; Thorfinn, 34, 

36, 37. 38, 39. 40. 
Kelly, Patrick, 237. 



Kennebec River, 354. 

Kettell, Samuel, in, 126. 

Khotan, 57. 

Kingsborough, collection of Lord, 21. 

Kjalarnes, 35. 

Klaproth, 56. 

Knoll, Conrad, 218. 

La Baya del Rio, 330. 

Labrador, cape of, 199 ; land of, 200, 

202, 345. 
La Boca de la Drago, 171 ; Sierpe, 

171 ; de Terminos, 234. 
La Cruz, 279. 
Lactantius, 89, 90. 
La Culata, 279. 
Ladrone islands, 294. 
Laet, Johannes de, 319, 346, 347. 
La Isla de Trinidad, 168, 169, 170. 
Lake Maggiore, 181. 
Lamb, Mrs. Martha J., 359. 
Land of Ayllon, 284. 
Land of Codfish, 197, 200, 202, 207. 
Land of Cortereal, 208. 
Land of Fire, 334. 
Land of Grace, 170. 
Land of Pearls, 173. 
Land of Red wood, 2S6. 
Land of the Farmer, 200. 
Land of the Grand Scarp, 349-351. , 
Land of the Holy Cross, 287. 
Land of the Palisades, 349. 
La Nouvelle France, 330. 
Lanzarote, island, 97. 
Lares, Almadorde, 237. 
La Ribida, 87, go 91. 
Laos, 57. 
Lapidaries, 265. 
La Plata, port of, 279. 
Lappenburg, M., 41.. 
Lariab, country of, 166. 
Las Barbas, islands, 180. 
Las Islas Desdichados, 292. 
Lateens, 180. 
Lathyrus, 60. 
Lalini, Brunetto, 62. 
Latitude, 66-68 
Laudonniere, Rene Goulaine de, 351, 

367. 
Leagues, land, 83, 305 ; sea, 83, 305, 

329. 331. 
Leather, 243. 
Leicester, earl of, 350. 
Leif, son of Eric the Red, 25, 27, 30, 

35. 42. 
Lelewel, Joachim, 182. 
Lemos, Caspar de, 207 
Lenormant, Francois, 15. 
Leo X. Pope, 181. 
Leon, Juan Ponce de, 221, 223-225, 

278. 



374 



INDEX. 



Lester, C. Edwards, 159. 

Leucippe, 17. 

Levanle, wind, 161. 

Lepe, Diego de, 174. 

Libeccio, wind, 161. 

Libya, 4, 5, 59, 60, 64, 219. 

Line of declination, 98, 99, 102, 158. 

Line of demarkation, 145, 296. 

Lings, 203. 

Lions, 268. 

Liquors, 171, 176, 178. 

Lisbon, 83, 84. 

Littre, E., 246. 

Liverpool, 84. 

Llwyd, Humphry, 43. 

Locke, Michael, 79, 315. 

Lockhart, John Ingrim, 233, 

London, 186, 194, 197. 

Longitude, 66-68, 332. 

Long Island, N. Y., 316, 317, 319, 320. 

Long Island, West Indies, 107, 356. 

Long Island Sound, 317, 353, 355. 

Looms, 148. 

Louise of Savoy, 320, 351, 352, 357, 

358; 
Louisiana, 275. 
Luisa, island of, 320. 
Lully, Raymond, 67. 
Luna, Fernando Perez de, 153. 
Luxan, Juan de, 152. 
Lynna, Nicholas de, 217. 
Lynx, 322, 324, 328. 

Machian, island, 294. 

Madagascar, 58. 

Madeira, island, 78, 304. 

Madoc, Guyneth, 43, 44. 

Maestrale, wind, 161. 

Maestro, wind, 161. 

Magalhaens, Fernam de, 69, 2B4-294, 

337- 
Magellan: {See Magalhaens.) 
Magellan's Strait, 289, 290, 291, 292, 

293. 333- 
Magnetic needle, 61-63, 65, 98, 99, 

102, 157, 158, 217, 293. 
Magnetism, terrestrial, 98, 69, 158, 

217. 
Magua, island. Great and Little, 107. 
Maguey, plant, 252 ; root, 268 
Magnussen, Arne, 34. 
Maine, 327, 328, 329. 
Mainwaring, 350. 
Maiollo, Visconte de, 307, 342. 
Maize, 176, 178, 230, 234, 283. 
Major, Richard Henry, 49, 171. 
Malincha, 261. 
Malpiero, Gasparo, 53, 
Malvas, port of, 208. 
Mames, 121, 123. 
Mamre, 6. 



Mandeville, Sir John, 58, 76. 

Mango, 84, 179, 180. 

Manants or Manans, 345, 346, 347, 
348, 358, {See Indians.) 

Manants Island, 359. 

Manhattan, 362. 

Manhattans, 346. 

Manhattes, 347; island of, 347; river 
of, 319. 

Mantinino, island, 175, 

Manzi, 82. 

Maques, or Maquaas, 347, 362. 

Maravedi, 245. 

Marchena, Fray Antonio de, 158. 

Mar del Sur, 176, 227, 228, 

Mar de Sargasso, 99, 100. 

Mar Dulce, 228. 

Marede Verrazana, 315. 

Mare Oceanum, 41, 96, 182, 184, 293. 

Margarita, Don Pedro, 151. 

Margarita, island, 171. 

Margarita of Austria, 159. 

Marigalante, island, 147. 

Mariner's compass, 61-63, 98, 99, 
102, 157, 158, 161, 293, 296. 

Mar Indicum, 314, 343. 

Marini, Giorgio Baptista, 71. 

Marinus of Tyre, 74, 75, 76. 

Mark, a weight, 174, 244. 

Markland, 28, 34, 40, 41, 42. 

Marmora, 180. 

Marnef, Jan de, 352. 

Mar pacifico, 289, 292, 293. 

Martens, 306, 356. 

Martha's Vineyard, 227. 

Martin, Joseph, 314. 

Martinez, Ferdinand, 80, 81. 

Martin V, Pope, 145. 

Martin of Bohemia, 67, 290. 

Martire d' Anghiera, Pietro, 154, 181, 
197, 221, 

Martires, islands of las, 224. 

Martyr Peter. {See Pietro Martire d' 
Anghiera.) 

Mastic, 124, 136. 

Mataia, iSo. 

Matan, island, 294. 

Maurice, prince of Orange and Nas- 
sau, 363. 

Mauritius River, 347. 

May River, 357. 

Mecca, 193. 

Medea, 76. 

Medina, Pedro de, 69. 

Mediterranean Sea, 5, 60. 

Melchorejo, 232, 233, 238. 

Melaccha, island of, 214. 

Mendoza, Luis de, 289. 

Mercator, Gerard, 76, 350. 360. 

Mercator's projection, 360. 

Meredith ap Rhees, 44. 



INDEX. 



375 



Merrimack River, 354. 

Meschita, Alvaro de, 291, 

Mestor, 8. 

Meteran, Emanuel van, 318. 

Mexico, 21, 175, 234, 235, 249, 250, 

252, 256-274, Gulf of, 352. 
Midjokul, 24. 

Miles, sea and land, 76, 98. 305, 331. 
Millet, 283. 
Minielo, Diego, 282. 
Mississippi, state, 275 ; river, 278, 279. 
Mnesis, 8. 

Mohawk River, 360, 
Moluccas, islands, 59, 64, 294, 296. 
Mona, island, 154. 
Moncado, Don Hugo de, 336. 
Montagneurs, les, 346. 
Montauk Point, 320. 
Monte Cristo, 289. 
Montejo, Francisco de, 247, 249. 
Monte Pascoal, 206, 
Monteregius, John of, 67. 
Montezuma, 240, 241, 242, 243, 245, 

247, 250, 251, 259, 260-273. 
Montreal, 345. 
Moors, 79, 94, 145. 
Morales, Caspar, 228, 
Moses, 6. 

Mount Hope Bay, 30, 34, 37. 
Muller, Johann, 67. 
Murphy, Henry C, 343, 363. 
Mutir, island, 294. 
Myos Hormos, 75. 
Myrrh, 213. 

Naddoddr, 22. 

Nantucket, 327. 

Napkins, 264. 

Narragansett Bay, 320, 321, 325, 326. 

Narrows, The, 316, 317. 

Narvaez, Pamfilo de, 279. 

Navarrete, Martin Fernandez de, 61, 
107. 

Navidad, Villa de la, 133, 136, 148, 
149. i50. 

Naville, Edward, 20. 

Necho, 59. 

Negropont, 51. 

Nepos, Cornelius, 60. 

Nequen, 252, 268. 

Newark Bay, 317. 

Newfoundland, 28, igS, 201. 

New France, 330, 345, 352, 357, 361. 

New Caul, 330. 

New Land, 185, 207, 297, 299, 306, 
330, 334- 344, 355. 

New Netherland, 319, 347, 361. 

Newport, stone tower of, 43 ; situa- 
tion, 325. 

New Providence, island, 107. 

New Spain, 21, 175, 176,249. 



New World, 206, 216, 217, 334. 

New York City, 84 ; bays, 316, 317 ; 
site, 347, 358. 

Nicobar, 57. 

Nile, navigation of, 18 ; canal from, 
60. 

Nirando, Alonso Perez, 168. 

Nomhre de Dios, 176, 342. 

Normans, 297. 

Norombegue, cape of, 354, 355 ; town 
of, 355. 356 ; river of, 355, 356, 
357, 359. 360. 

North America, 185. 

North Carolina, 302, 306, 311. 

Northmen, galleys of, 21, 24 ; de- 
ported, 22 ; voyages, 25-41. 

North Sea, 21, 301, 302. 

Norumbega, 346, 351, 352, 356, 360. 

Norway, 22, 23, 24, 333, 334. 

Noun, the god, 20. 

Nova Scotia, 28, 198, 201, 297. 

Novaya Zemlya, 318. 

Nucay, 119. 

Nuestra Senora, La Mar de. 125. 

Nueva Espana, 21, 175. 

Nuova Terra, 306-330. 

Nuremberg, 67, 68. 

Olafs, 55. 

Clone, 349. 

Oneydes, 346. 

Onondagas, 346. 

Onoyants, les, 346. 

Onslow Bay, 309. 

Crichalcum, 8, 10, 11, igg. 

Orinoco River, 160, 168, 170, 171. 

Orteguilla, 267. 

Ortelius, Abraham, 79, 360. 

Ortubia, Juan Perez de, 224. 

Ostro, the wind, 161. 

Otte, E. C, 44. 

Otters, 268. 

Oxford, 62. 

Pachol, 264. 

Pacific Ocean, 289, 292, 293. 

Paesani, 346, 352. 

Paisans or paysans, 345, 346. 

Palisades, the, 348. 

Palfrey, John Corham, 43. 

Palos, 87, 95, 96. 

Palma, island, 97. 

Palmetto trees, 308. 

Panama, isthmus, 177, 342. 

Panic, 123. 

Panuco, province, 236, 247; river, 

275, 276, 277, 278, 279. 
Paor, 28 1, 284. 
Paper, 252, 264. 
Paria, Culf of, 171; country of, 172, 

173. 



376 



INDEX. 



Pascua Florida, 223. 

Pasqualigo, Alvise, 189 ; Francesco, 

189 ; Lorenzo, 189 ; Pietro, 209. 
Pasqui, 2S1. 
Patagonians, 2S9. 
Pearls, 117, 170, 173, 174, 2i6, 226, 

243, 259 271, 274, 283. 
Peasants, 345, 352. {See Indians.) 
Peking, 84. 

Peltry, 298, 355, 356, 358. 
Penobscot River, 354. 
Perestrello, Bartolomco Monis de, 70. 
Perez, Friar Juan, 90, 91 ; Fray Rod- 

rigo, 133- 
Perpignan, 135. 
Persia, 44, 57. 
Pertz, George Henry, 41. 
Peso, 236. 

Peter, the Martyr, 181. 
Petuneurs, les, 346. 
Pliilippe, duke of Savoy, 320. 
Philippine Islands, 294. 
Phoenicians, 7, 18, 59, 60. 
Pigafetta, Antonio, 66, 69, 83, 284, 

295. 
Pillars of Hercules, 4, 7, 15, 17, 18, 

21, 59, 60, 72. 
Pilots, 67, 102, 103, 157, 158, 179. 
Pineda, Alonso Alvarez de, 275-279. 
Pinkerton's collections, 71. 
Pinzon, Martin, Alonso, 77, 96, io3, 

134. 137. 141. I43i 174 ; Vicente 

Yanez, 96, 108, 134, 214, 278. 
Pisi, 227. 

Pizzaro, Francisco, 228. 
Place, Jean de la, 219. 
Plato, 3, So. 
Plethron, 9. 
Pliny, 60, 65. 
Plutarch, 3. 
Porcorosa, 180. 
Point Judith, 326, 
Pola, island, 224. 
Pole, antarctic, 293 ; arctic, 293. 
Polo, Maffeo, 52, 53, 54, 55 ; Marco, 

52, 53, 54. 55. 56. 57, 58. 76, 82, 

83; Nicolo, 52, 53, 54, 55. 
Ponente, wind, 161. 
Pontonchan, 239, 248. 
Porcelain, 363. 
Poree, Fremyn, 340. 
Porland, 45. 

Port du Refuge, 326, 327. 
Porto Bello, 180. 
Porto Rico, 128, 221. 
I'orto Santo, island, 77, 78. 
Porto Seguro, 206. 
I'ortugal, 84, 196. 
I'oseidon, 5, 7, ii, 15. 
Potatoes, 283. 
Poughkeepsie, 353. 



Powel, David, 43, 44. 

Prado, prior of, 87, 91. 

Preudhomme, Guillaume, 339. 

Prima Tierra Vista, igo, 191. 

Providence, 325, 326. 

Psenophis, 3. 

Ptolemy, 73, 74, 75, 77, 1S2, 191, 

215, 336. 
Puebla, Ruy Gonzales de, 187. 
Puertocarrero, Alonso, 249. 
Puerto de la Concepcion, 128. 
Puerto del Principe, 125, 330, 
Puerto de Mares, 125. 
Puerto de San Nicolas, 128. 
Puerto de Santa Catalina, 126. 
Puerto Grande, 152. 
Puerto Maria, 127. 
Puerto Santo, 126. 
Pumpkins, 147. 
Punta de Arenal, 169, 170. 
Punta de Arracifes, 224. 
Punta de Cotoche, 221, 232. 
Punta de la Aguda, 170. 
Punta dela Galera, 169. 
Punta de la Playa, 169. 
Punta Santa, 130, 131. 

Quetzalcoatl, temple of, 254. 
Quinsay, 75,83, 84, 115, 120. 
Quintalbor, 242, 243, 245. 
Quitlalpitoc, 239, 245, 246, 247. 
Quohathe, 284, 

Ra, the god, 20. 

Race-course, 12. 

Rafn, Charles C., 34. 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, 357. 

Ramusio, Giovanni Battista, 52, 

Raritan Bay, 317. 

Ravens, 22, 23. 

Razors, 264. 

Real, money, 244, 245. 

Red race, i. 

Red Sea, 60. 

Red wood, 193, 213, 286. 

Refugio, 321. 

Regiomontanus, 67, 80. 

Retrete, port, 180. 

Reychenes, 24. 

Rhodes, island of, 320. 

Ribauld. {See Ribaiit.) 

Ribault. {See Ribaut.) 

Ribaut, Jean, 340, 344. 

Ribero, Diego, 296. 

Rio Coatzacoalcos, 236. 

Rio de Banderas, 235. 

Rio de Belen, 227. 

Rio de Flores, 279. 

Rio de Janeiro, 228. 

Rio de la Cruz, 224. 

Rio de la Plata, 228, 287. 



INDEX. 



377 



Rio de las Gamas, 330. 

Rio de las Palmas, 279. 

Rio del Espiriiu Sanio, 27S, 279. 

Rio del Sol, 124. 

Rio de Luna, 117. 

Rio de Mares, 117, 118, 124, 182. 

Rio de Montaignes, 319. 

Rio de Neves, 279. 

Rio de Pescadores, 279. 

Rio de San Anton, 330. 

Rio Fondo, 330. 

Rio Grande, 247. 

Rio Janeiro. 286, 287. 

Rio Jordan, 280, 284, 330. 

Rio Nevado, 208. 

Rio Panuco, 275, 276, 277, 278. 

Rio Seco, 279, 330, 

Roanoke, island, 311. 

Roberval, Sieur de, 352. 

Roderic, Master, 67. 

Roffet, Ponce, 345. 

Roque, Jean Francois de la, 352. 

Rousselay, Zanobus de, 339. 

Rum Cay, island, 107. 

Rustichi, 338. 

Rustizielo, 57. 

Ruysch, Johann, 215. 

Rymer's Foedera, 188. 

Saint Amaro, gg. 

St. Augustine, 8g. 

St. Christopher, 184. 

St. David's island, 356. 

St. Die, 218. 

St. George's island, 356. 

St. Germain, port of, 222. 

St. lago de la Spata, 285. 

St. John's island, W. Indies, I7g ; 

Canada, igo, 192. 
St. Julian, port of, 287, 2go. 
St, Lawrence, Gulf of, 297 ; isle of, 

352 ; river of, 290, 291, 292, 2g3, 

298, 333- 
St. Malo, 344, 345. 
St. Lucy's day, 2S6. 
Saga of Eric the Red, 26 ; of Thorfinn 

Karlsefne, 34. 
Sagres, 63. 

Saguenay, 345 ; sea of, 357. 
Salamanca, 87. 
Salmana, island, 108. 
Salmon, 29, 30. 
Sanchez, Rafael, 125, 142. 
Sand-glass, 69. 
Sand-haffn, 24, 25. 
Sandwich islands, 75. 
Sandy Hook, 316, 317, 353. 
San Juan de Ulua, 235. 
Salt, 268. 
Saltes, 141, 
San Domingo, 128, 172, 179, 232. 



San Juan Baptista, island, 148. 

San Lazaro, 229. 

San Lucar de Barrameda, 168, 182. 

San Miguel, bay of, 227. 

San Pablo River, 276. 

San Pedro River, 276. 

San Salvador, Cuba, 117 ; island, 107, 
III. 

Santa Elena, cape of, 279, 289, 284, 

Santa Fe, 91, 92, 93. 

Santa Maria de la Antigua del Darien, 
225, 226, 227, 228. 

Santa Maria de Guadalupe, island, 
147- 157. 

Santa Maria de la Concepcion, 113. 

Santa Maria, island, 140 ; port, 184. 

Santa Marta, island, 224. 

Santangel, Luis de, 87, 92. 

Santarem Visconte de, 64. 

Santee River, 184. 

Santiago, Cuba, 231, 233. 

Sant Joan, island, 190, 192, 

^an Tomas, fort of, 151. 

Santonge or Santongeois, 34S, 352. 

Saomete, island, 113. 

Sardis, 2, 219. 

Scandinavia, seamen of, 21, 22, 23. 

Schooner, Johannes, 220. 

Schoolcraft, Henry R., 42. 

Schott, Charles A., gg, 158. 

Schotti, Joannis, 182. 

Scio, island, 124. 
Scotland, 46. 
Scylla, 34g. 

Sea-weed, gg, 100, 134. 
Sebastian, harbor of, gg. 
Secalart, Raulin, 352, 353. 
Sanchis, 3. 

Seneca, Lucius Annaeus, 76, 80, 88. 
Senecas, Indians, 346. 
Seres, 74, 75. 
Seti I., of Egypt, 20. 
Seven Cities, 7g, 84, igo, igs. 
Seville, 141, 143, 285. 
Shetland Islands, 22. 
Ships, Egyptian, 18 ; Phoenician, 18 ; 
Northmen, 24 ; speed of, 68 ; of In- 
dia, 180. 
Siam, 57. 
Siberia, 58. 

Sidney, Sir Philip, 315. 
Sierra de Quarequa, 226. 
Sierra Leone, 66, 158, 213, 286. 
Silver, 119, 243, 251, 265. 
Silveyra, Fernao de, 301. 
Sinae, 74. 
Sines, 227. 
Sirocco, 161. 
Skagefjord, 25. 
Skalholt, 25. 
Skraelings, 38, 39, 40. 



378 



INDEX. 



Skraelings' land, 41, 

Skulls, 250. 

Slaves, Indian, 167. 

Sluyter Peter, 363. 

Smith, Captain John, 318. 

Sneeland, 221. 

Snefelsnes, 24. 

Snorrason, Thorbrand, 39. 

Snoro, Thorbrandson, 34. 

Socotra, 58. 

Soles, 203. 

Solinus, C. Julius, 219. 

Solis, Juan Diaz de, 214, 287. 

Solon, 2, 3, 6. 

Somerset island, 356, 

Somers, Sir George, 356. 

Somer's Island, 356. 

Sona, 28. 

Soncino, Raimondo di, 190, 192. 

South America, 160, 166, 167, 169, 

170, 173, 184, 185. 
South Carolina, 284, 302, 309. 
South Sea, 176, 226, 227, 228. 
Spain, early voyages from, 60. 76, 77 ; 

conquered, 79. 
Spices, 59, 64. 

Spice Islands, 59, 64, 294, 295, 296. 
Stadium, 6. 

Stanley, Henry E. J., 206. 
Staten Island, 316, 317 ; Sound, 317. 
Stephanius, Sigurd, 41. 
Steppes, Mongolian, 57. 
Stevens, Henry, 184. 
Stock-fish, 193. 
Stow, John, 197. 
Strait of Belle Isle, 345. 
Strait of Magellan, 289, 290, 291, 292, 

293. 333- 
Strait of the Eleven Thousand Virgins, 

289. 
Straumey, 35. 
Straumfjord, 36, 40. 
Style, old and new, 107. 
Suache, 28. 
Suevi, 61. 
Sumatra, 57, 352. 
Sveinson, Bishop Brynjulf, 25, 34. 

Tabasco, 240, 245, 248. 
Tadore, island, 294. 
Tahout, sacred books of, 20. 
Tale, 232. 
Tanias, 193. 
Tanzaca, 281, 284. 
Tarenate, island, 294. 
Tassel, Robert, 340. 
Tacancal, 281. 
Tehuacacinco, 250. 
Tendilla, count of, 181. 
Teneriffe, 97. 
Tepeaquilla, 270. 



Terceira, 74, 207. 

Terra de Lavrador, 200, 202. 

Terra delie Perle, 211. 

Terra del Verzino, 286. 

Terra de Santa Cruz, 207, 216, 289, 

300. 
Terra de Vera Cruz, 207, 211. 
Terra dos Cortereals, 208. 
Terra Florida, 307, 342, 344. 
Terra ferma, 189, 192. 
Terra Nova, 207, 215, 354. 
Terra Sanctae Crucis, 287. 
Terra Verde, 208. 
Terra d' Anormee Berge, La, 349, 

353, 356, 357- 
Terre de Norumberge, 357, 358. 
Terre Francesque, 330, 357, 358. 
Terre Netifve, 354. 
Tetzcat. 272. 

Tetzcatlipuca, the god, 235, 247, 272. 
Teules, 245, 251, 260. 
Teuthlille, 239, 241, 242, 243, 245. 
Texas, 275. 
Tezcuco, lake, 256. 
Theatres, 266. 
Thebes, 20. 

Thevet, Andre, 351, 359, 360. 
Thinae, 227. 
Thirkill, Launcelot, 195. 
Thompson, Benjamin ¥., 353. 
Thor, the god, 36. 

Thorbrandson, Snorro, 34, 37, 39, 40. 
Thord, Jonn, son of, 25. 
Thorhall, 36, 37, 42. 
Thorvard, 39. 
Thucydides. 80. 
Thule, 73, 70. 
Tibet, 57. 

Tierra de Ayllon, 284. 
Tierra de Gracia, 170, 171, 
Tierra del Fuego, 334. 
Tierra de los Bacallaos, 197, 200, 202, 

207. 
Tierra firme, lio, 179. 
Tigers, 268, 
Tihe, 283. 
Tin, 269. 
Tiphys, 76. 
Titus, 232. 
Tlacupa, 260, 270. 
Tlalmanalco, 258. 
Tlascalla, 250, 251, 258. 
Tlatateteclo, 239. 
Tlateluco, the, 267, 
Tobacco, 121, 264, 268. 
Tordesillas, 146, 295, 296. 
Torfeeus, or Torfason, Thormod, 33, 

34. 41- 
Tokio, 84. 

Torquemada, Juan de, 243. 
Torralva, Juan de, 276. 



INDEX. 



379 



Torres, Antonio de, 150, 156 ; Luis 

de, 120. 
Tortosa, 1S7. 
Tortuga, island, 127. 
Toscanelli, Paolo, 80. 
Tramontana, wind, 161. 
Trees, 12, 108, 114, 115, 116, 124, 

163, 166, 189, 209, 212, 223, 266, 

308, 309, 324, 326, 327, 352. 
Triana, Rodrigo de, 107. 
Trico, Catelyn, 347. 
Trinidad, island of, 168, 169, 170, 

171. 
Trireme, 10, 12. 
Troy, N. Y., 353. 
Tryggvason, King Olaf . 35. 
Tsiuenchau, 82. 
Tunguses, 58. 
Turk Island, 107, 108. 
Turkeys, 268. 
Turin, papyrus of, 15. 
Tuspa, 236. 
Tusta, 236. 
Tustepec, 239. 
Tyrker, 29. 
Tyrrhenia, 5, 8. 

Ubygd, 24. 
UUoa, Alfonso de, 71, 
Ulysses, 52. 
Uraba, Gulf of, 225. 

Valentine, David T., 359. 

Valladolid, 182. 

Valparaiso, 140. 

Van Rensselaer Island, 361. 

Vargas, 276. 

Varnhagen, F. A. de, 159. 

Vegetables, 9, 121, 123, 129, 147, 

151, 164, 176, 232, 268, 283, 288. 
Velasquez, Diego, 231, 232, 233, 236, 

237, 278, 359. 
Venezuela, 164, 168, 171. 
Venice, 51, 59, 164, 188, 199, 227. 
Vera Cruz, 249, 266, 277 ; land of, 

207, 211. 
Veragua, 176, 177, 178, 179, 226, 227. 
Vermonde, isle de, 355, 356. 
Verrazana seu Gallia nova, 330. 
Verrazzano, Giovanni da : Varasenne, 

Jean de, 340 ; Varesam, Jehan de, 

339 ; Varezano, Joao, 300 ; Verar- 
sanus, 342 ; Verassen, Jean, 298 , 
Verazano, Joao, 3(^1 ; Verazanus, 
John, 315; Verrassane, Jehan de, 

340 ; Verrazano, Jean, 357, 358. 
First voyage to America, 298, 299 ; 

second voyage, 300 ; his ship, 
301, 304 ; letter to Francis I., 
301-303 ; discovers land, 305, 
306 ; map, 314, 315 ; on penin- 



sula of Virginia, 314 ; Sea of 
Verrazzano, 315 ; enters New- 
York Bay, 316 ; discovers the 
Hudson, 317 ; gives a name to 
Block Island, 320 ; anchors in 
Narraganselt Bay, 321-326 ; sails 
along the coast of Maine, 327- 
329 ; extent of land discovered, 
329, 351. 357 ; geographical ex- 
planation, 331 ; news of his re- 
turn, 335 ; unfavorable opinions 
concerning the voyage, 337 ; his 
former voyages, 338 ; agreement 
for a third voyage to America, 
339 ; his death, 340, 341 ; map 
and globe, 341, 342. 
Verrazzano, Hieronymus da, 315, 

339 ; map, 315, 330, 343. 
Verrazzano, Pier da, 300. 
Verzino, 213, 216. 
Vespasian, 232, 

Vespucci Amerigo, his first voyage, 
160 ; reaches the continent of 
America, 160 ; explorations, 161- 
165 ; land of Lariab, 166 ; island 
of Iti, 167 ; returns to Spain, 167. 
Vespucci's second voyage, 173 ; ex- 
plorations along the coast of South 
America, 174 ; returns to Spain, 

174. 

Vespucci's third voyage, 212 ; explores 
the east coast of Brazil, 213 ; re- 
turns to Lisbon, 214. 

Vespucci's fourth voyage, 214 ; sails 
southward along the coast of Brazil, 
214 ; Bay of All Saints, 214 ; returns 
to Portugal, account of his four voy- 
ages, 217, 218 ; his name given to 
the continent, 218, 219 ; false im- 
putations, 220. 

Vicente, Martin, 77. • 

Vieusseux, Geo. Pietro, 339. 

Vigfusson, Gudbrand, 33. 

Vikings, 21. 

Villa, Pedro de, 138. 

Villa de la Navidad, 133, 136, 148, 
149, 150. 

Villalan, Doctor, 91. 

Villa Rica de Vera Cruz, 249, 279. 

Villa Segura, 277. 

Villegagnon, Chevalier, 359. 

Villers, 350. 

Vinland discovered, 30 ; shortest day 
in, 31-34 ; island, 41 ; promontory, 
41. 

Virginia, peninsula of, 313, 314, 311;, 
318. 

Vision, prophetic, 15S, 180. 

Vries, David Pieterse, 347. 

Walckenaer, Baron de, 183. 



38o 



INDEX. 



Waldseemtiller, Martin, 218. 
Walker, E., 99. 
Wassenaer, Nicolaes a, 347. 
Watling Island, 107. 
Wells, 266. 

Western Sea, 315, 343. 
West Indies, 145, 203. 
Westminster, 201, 203. 
Wheat, in Vinland, 35, 37 ; in Green- 
land, 35 ; in Iceland, 35, 
Wheaton, Henry, 23. 
Whitehall, 200. 
Wilden, 347. 
Wild-men, 345, 347. 
Wine, 171, 178. 
Wine-berries, 29, 35, 42. 
Wine-land, 30. 
Wine-wood, 29, 37, 42. 
Worthington, William, 203. 

Xamunabe, 2S3. 
Xamunambe, 281. 
Xapida, 283. 
Xapira, 281. 
Xathi, 283, 
Xicales, 262. 
Xiquipiles, 269. 
Xocotlan, 250. 



Xoxi, 281. 

Yahveh, sees the wickedness of man, 

19. 
Yamaye, island of, 133. 
Yebra River, 177. 
Yenyohol, 281. 
Yonge, C. D., 198. 
Yuanta, 148. 
Yuca, 232. 
Yucatan, 148, 175, 214, 215, 229, 230, 

232, 233, 239. 
Yule, Henry, 55, 57. 
Yurbaco, 183. 

Zacton, or Zayton, 82, 120. 

Zamiscaron, 28. 

Zanzibar, 58. 

Zapata, 276. 

Zeno, Antonio, 45, 46, 50 ; Carlo, 45, 

50 ; Nicolo, 44, 45, 46. 
Zeni brothers' voyage, 44, 49, 50. 
Zeus, assembles the gods, 19. 
Zichmni, 45, 49. 
Zipangi, 84. {See Cipango.) 
Zodiac, 244. 
Zubu, island, 294. 



THE END. 



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